Protecting relatives: Whale conservation and storytelling
Gulf Islands National Park Reserve: Indigenous stories told through an audio box on Saturna Island are helping Parks Canada and the W̱SÁNEĆ (pronounced wh-say-nich) people highlight the historical and cultural significance of endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales.
An icon of the West Coast
The killer whale, also known as the orca, is one of the most well-known and studied species on the West Coast. Killer whales are complex animals that live in close-knit communities called pods. They teach their young distinct calls not used by other pods.
Killer whales have important historical and cultural significance for First Nations and coastal communities in British Columbia.
One population - Southern Resident Killer Whales - is endangered, with only 75 whales remaining as of July 2023. This population lives in the Pacific Northwest and can be spotted from the Gulf Islands National Park Reserve coast.
Southern Resident Killer Whales face 3 main threats to their survival:
- contaminants
- lack of their primary prey - Chinook salmon
- disturbance from vessels, as noise from boats interferes with their ability to find prey and communicate with each other
Parks Canada is working with First Nations and other government departments to support Southern Resident Killer Whale recovery through monitoring, education and enforcement. One protection measure put in place in 2021 was a requirement that all boats keep a distance of 400 metres from killer whales in specific areas of southern BC coastal waters. In all other Canadian Pacific waters, boats must keep 200 metres away from killer whales.
Whale trails and tales
Parks Canada has partnered with The Whale Trail, an organization promoting shore-based whale watching as an alternative to vessel-based viewing. Each Whale Trail location is marked with an interpretive sign, so visitors can learn more about the marine mammals they may see, the cultural history of the area, and the actions they can take to help protect marine mammals.
One of The Whale Trail sites is at ṮEḴTEḴSEN (pronounced tek-tek-sin, East Point) on Saturna Island within Gulf Islands National Park Reserve. In 2023, the W̱SÁNEĆ Leadership Council, the Tsawout First Nation, and Parks Canada renamed this land-based whale viewing trail ḰENES SOȽ (kwun-us-saw-lh).
Visitors to ṮEḴTEḴSEN can learn about Southern Resident Killer Whales through interpretive signs and audio stories about the island’s cultural significance to the W̱SÁNEĆ people. The audio story is narrated by Tiffany Joseph, a W̱SÁNEĆ knowledge holder, environmental steward, and activist. It describes the historical and cultural connection between the W̱SÁNEĆ People and killer whales. For the W̱SÁNEĆ, these animals are considered as family and protectors of their people.
ḴEL,ȽOLEMEĆEN, killer whale, used to live on the earth at one time. He left the earth long ago with his cane on his back. ḴEL,ȽOLEMEĆEN is a relative of the W̱SÁNEĆ people. ḴEL,ȽOLEMEĆEN took a W̱SÁNEĆ wife, who, over time, transformed into a ḴEL,ȽOLEMEĆEN. Family is an important value in W̱SÁNEĆ culture, so she continues to come and visit her family, the W̱SÁNEĆ people. Many coastal Indigenous peoples have felt protected by Killer Whales, and this is why the people feel so strongly about protecting the ḴEL,ȽOLEMEĆEN, in return.
At the viewpoint on the ḰENES SOȽ, visitors can relax on two cedar benches carved by W̱SÁNEĆ artist Bear Horne or appreciate the ḴEL,ȽOLEMEĆEN drawings created by local Tsawout artist Iswalh Peters.
Parks Canada staff are working with First Nations to raise awareness with the public about the long cultural and historical significance of Southern Resident Killer Whales. The stories told on Saturna Island are one way that visitors are being inspired to help protect Southern Resident Killer Whales from disappearing.
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