Pod of killer whales spotted in Burrard Inlet

Some lucky SeaBus passengers had a whale of a time on their morning commute Friday, when a pod of orcas was seen swimming around Burrard Inlet.

The killer whales were seen swimming north past Stanley Park, TransLink says in its Buzzer newsletter.

Theodore was a passenger on his way to UBC when he says he saw the whales on the 9:15 a.m. sailing.

“My daily commute got 100 better!,” he posted on X.

SeaBus Master Hark Nissen told the Buzzer he spotted the orcas while he was at the wheelhouse of the vessel.

He says orcas are seen about three times a years — but not as close as Friday’s encounter.

Sightings slowly becoming less rare: expert

Andrew Trites, head of UBC’s Marine Mammal Research Unit, says it is much more common to see the creatures swimming nearby than it was decades ago.

“It’s something that you would not have seen if you took the ferry in 20 years ago,” he told CityNews, saying it was “virtually unheard of” to have such a close encounter.

“But today, in fact, there’s probably not a day that goes by that there is not a killer somewhere in the Salish Sea. And occasionally they’re right here in downtown Vancouver.”

Trites says stabilizing seal populations are a large part of the difference over the years.

“We have very healthy populations of seals and sea lions in British Columbia,” he said, explaining that their numbers have been stable for about 25 years.

“It’s essentially it’s a grocery store now that is fully stocked, and so the animals can come here and …they know they’re going to find their meat here,” he said.

“That’s what brings them in: we have the world’s highest density of seals. There’s no better place to be if you’re a killer whale that eats other marine mammals.”

Trites point out that in the past, humans hunted whales, some “almost to the point of extinction.” And that’s not the only animal affected by human activity.

“We hunted seals and sea lions, as well, almost like extinction, such as elephant seals, and seals were just decimated everywhere,” he said

“As a result of having removed all these mammals, it would have decimated the world’s top predator of the ocean, the killer whale.”

Trites says that fortunately, the ecosystems have recovered after these activities were halted. And having killer whales here further balances things.

“It’s ultimately making a system that is healthier for all the species that live in it,” he said. “and a”lso an ecosystem this diverse, I think that gives you a heightened greater pleasure to know that we’re living next to one of the world’s healthiest ecosystems.”

With files from Monika Gul.