Transient orcas spotted in Mason County waters

Transient killer whales have been spotted in the southern reaches of the Salish Sea.

Julie Watson, killer whale policy lead for the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, said transient killer whales are the ones most often spotted in Oakland Bay or Pickering Passage in recent months. Southern resident orcas are endangered, while transient killer whales are not.

"They are called transient because they come and go, but we have been seeing in recent years more transients and them spending longer periods of time in Puget Sound," Watson told the Journal. "Part of that could be there's plenty of th...