Beluga Whales
March 16th, 2007 by Stacy Jon Peterson
These white whales can be a blast to observe on the Turnagain Arm in the vicinity of Girdwood as they follow the salmon up this body of water in the summer. If you see a large group of cars in a pullout and everyone is staring at the cliffs — think Dall’s Sheep. If you see a large group of cars in a pullout and everyone is staring out over the water — think Beluga’s.
The visitor’s center at Portage Glacier has a log book where visitors report recent sightings of Belugas along the Arm. A call to the center from Anchorage may be a good way to see if Beluga’s are in the Arm during your trip.
Photographing Beluga’s can be a challenge. They rarely do more than quickly spout and show their backs (top photo). They lack a pronounced dorsal fin (ala Orca), and present as not much more than a speck of floating styrofoam on the water at a distance.
Photos of flukes are prized, and full head shots from “spy hopping” are even more rare in my experience! But at times they come very close to the shore, and the challenge of getting an interesting photograph is worth it.
Watch for darker immatures and small “torpedo-shaped babies among the full white adults (bottom photo). They rarely spend much time on the surface, so a quick focusing camera is very helpful.