Killer whales do not abide by the human calendar, or do they?
For the third consecutive year, a group of transient killer whales cataloged as the CA51 group has visited the Los Angeles area for New Year's Day.
The accompanying images were captured Wednesday afternoon by Eric Martin, who was with California Killer Whale Project founder Alisa Schulman-Janiger aboard Martin's 13-foot inflatable boat, off the Palos Verdes Peninaula.
Four members of the CA51 group showed up in the same general area last week , and performed a series of acrobatics and killed a common dolphin. (The CA51s are also called the friendly pod, because they sometimes interact with boaters.)
This time it was the whole family: eight killer whales of various age and a spanking new baby, which Martin affectionately referred to as "the little twerp."
They were also spotted by volunteers of the ACS-LA Gray Whale Census and Behavior Project, and by passengers aboard at least two commercial whale-watching boats.
They were not as playful this time. They mostly traveled north and south beyond the peninsula and were last seen swimming to the south-southeast.
Transient killer whales feed predominantly on other marine mammals, including gray whale calves. They're more commonly seen far to the north, notably in Monterey Bay.
But the CA51s recently expanded their range to include Southern California. (These eight killer whales were seen in the Santa Barbara Channel on Monday.)
The CA51s are spotted sporadically in Southland waters throughout the year, but the holiday season seems to be their favorite.
–Pete Thomas
–Photos of Wednesday's New Year's Day orca encounter are courtesy of ©Eric Martin
