Report Whale Sightings

Report whales by filling in the form below, or by email, Facebook, or phone. See below for details.

INFORMATION TO REPORT

Email

Facebook

Telephone: 866-672-2638 (listen for how to report a sighting)

Please fill in as much information as possible to make your report the best it can be. Did you get photos that may identify individuals? If so, please send us your pictures!

WHAT TO REPORT by email - please provide:

  • Date

  • Time

  • Type of whale, dolphin, or porpoise (if uncertain please report as uncertain & describe)

  • If orcas: any adult males (5+ foot dorsal fin)?  if so how many?

  • If orcas: open saddle patches?

  • Number of whales

  • Location of whale(s) – Body of water (for example Puget Sound, Elliot Bay, Admiralty Inlet, etc.), closest landmark (for example Point No Point, Bainbridge Isl., Sandy Point, etc.), city or town, or GPS coordinates. Please include where in channel - (for example: mid, east side, west side, etc.)

  • Direction of travel

  • Speed of travel: slow, medium, fast pace

ADDITIONAL DETAILS & behavioral observations add valuable data and insights:

  • Surface Active Behaviors: breach (launches body out of the water); spyhops; tail lobs; tail slaps; cartwheels

  • Traveling

  • Porpoising (high speed travel - body out of water, leaving wake or rooster tail)

  • Circling

  • Many directional changes (which can indicate hunting, milling, foraging)

  • Milling

  • Foraging

  • Feeding

  • Hunting

PHOTOS and/or VIDEOS help confirm species and individual/pod IDs etc. Highest resolution possible, but even lower res and cellphone photos can be good enough to confirm species.