Part 2: Twenty Years of Action: What We've Tried, What it Cost, and What it Changed

In this second episode of our multi-part series on Southern Resident killer whales, we take a look at the last twenty years of effort that has included new vessel regulations, salmon habitat restoration, contaminant monitoring, and the formation of a high-profile task force.

Hundreds of millions to billions of dollars have been invested since NOAA first published the SRKW recovery plan.

On this episode we discuss what we have actually done in the twenty years since the SRKWs were listed on the endangered species list, and what has it changed?

Coming up in Part 3 of this series we will get into what we can do over the next 10 years to turn things around for the Southern Resident killer whales.

If you are enjoying listening to our podcast, please share this with your friends, follow/subscribe, and leave us feedback/reviews wherever you listen to podcasts!

And if you’d like to join Jeff and Sara on a whale watching tour in 2026, please check out to Maya’s Legacy Whale Watching to book!

You can also find us on Instagram, Facebook and Youtube. Please send us feedback or questions at afterthebreachpodcast@gmail.com.

And remember, stay safe out there.

Links mentioned in this episode:

• NOAA Fisheries Recovery Plan for Southern Resident Killer Whales (2008): https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/resource/document/recovery-plan-southern-resident-killer-whales-orcinus-orca
• The Relationship between Vessel Traffic and Noise Levels Received by Killer Whales: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0140119
• Recommendations from the Southern Resident Killer Whale Task Force: https://orca.wa.gov/progress/all-recommendations/
• State of Salmon in Watersheds: https://stateofsalmon.wa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/ExecSummary-2024.pdf

There were a lot of whales here this January and the winter months are a great time to see them in the Salish Sea. On this episode we talk about our January encounters and who has been present in the Salish Sea this winter. We also discuss how this was not always the case in the Salish Sea and how the old information persists that whale presence is predominantly May - September. But with the increase in both the Bigg's killer whale and humpback populations, and the changing patterns of Southern Resident killer whale presence in the inland waters, whales can be seen in the Salish Sea year-round.

While Sara was in Australia with the Bremer Canyon killer whales in January, Jeff is joined by frequent guests Monika Wieland Shields from the Orca Behavior Institute and April Ryan, a marine naturalist and captain with Maya's Legacy Whale Watching.

We also announced special, limited availability collaborative whale watching tours with the Orca Behavior Institute and Maya's Legacy Whale Watching. These tours will be available on limited dates in July, 2026.

Designed for those who want to experience, learn about and support whale research, this unique tour will give you the chance to learn directly from a killer whale scientist. This tour follows the same half-day format as Maya's Legacy Whale Watching's daily half-day tours, with an added research perspective on board. A guest naturalist from the Orca Behavior Institute will share how scientists observe whales in the field and how observations made on the water contribute to long-term research efforts.

These tours are limited in availability:

• Friday, July 3 — 4:30 PM
• Friday, July 10 — 3:30 PM
• Friday, July 17 — 3:30 PM
• Friday, July 24 — 3:30 PM
• Wednesday, July 29 — 4:30 PM

If you are interested, you can contact Maya's Legacy Whale Watching to reserve seats.

We also responded to several listener emails regarding the music at the beginning and end of each episode. Shout out to Other Animal who created original music for After the Breach Podcast. Curious which of our listeners knew there were whale vocals in there? Anyone interested in hearing the full version of the music? Hit us up by email.

If you are enjoying listening to our podcast, please share this with your friends, follow/subscribe, and leave us feedback/reviews wherever you listen to podcasts! And if you’d like to join Jeff and Sara on a whale watching tour, please reach out to Maya's Legacy Whale Watching to book!

You can also find us on Instagram, Facebook and Youtube. Please send us feedback or questions at afterthebreachpodcast@gmail.com. And remember, stay safe out there.

T19C, "Spouter," breaching during a sea lion hunt in January mid-day lighting. Photo by Jeff Friedman, Maya's Legacy Whale Watching.

Part 1: How We Got Here

In this first episode of our multi-part series on Southern Resident killer whales, we step back to look at the full historical arc — from the pre-capture population, through the capture era, to the endangered listing that shapes recovery efforts happening today.

This episode sets the foundation for the entire series. Before we can talk about recovery strategies and efforts, we need to understand how the Southern Resident killer whales became endangered in the first place.

We discuss what we know about the pre-capture population, the capture era and its lasting impacts, recovery and then decline, risk factors and the endangered species listing.

Coming up in Part 2 we will dig into actions that have been taken over the last 20 years since the endangered species listing, how much it has cost and the results (or lack of) for Southern Resident recovery.

If you are enjoying listening to our podcast, please share this with your friends, follow/subscribe, and leave us feedback/reviews wherever you listen to podcasts!

And if you’d like to join Jeff and Sara on a whale watching tour in 2026, please check out to Maya’s Legacy Whale Watching to book!

You can also find us on Instagram, Facebook and Youtube. Please send us feedback or questions at afterthebreachpodcast@gmail.com.

And remember, stay safe out there.

Links mentioned in this episode:

• Endangered Orcas: The Story of the Southern Residents: https://www.orcabehaviorinstitute.org/product/endangered-orcas-book
• NOAA Fisheries Recovery Plan for Southern Resident Killer Whales (2008): https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/resource/document/recovery-plan-southern-resident-killer-whales-orcinus-orca