The beautiful humpback whale we were lucky enough to photograph in the ocean outside our lodge at Cape Mudge, on Quadra Island, has now been officially identified by the Marine Education Research Society as 9 year old female, Apollo!
The size of a school bus, she is one of a few, very special humpbacks for whom three generations have been documented! Apollo was born to a magnificent humpback called Horizon and last year she became a mother herself.. to a ‘little’ calf named Nova! As the calves generally stay with their mothers for a year… this could well have been one of the first times that mother and son were travelling alone…She’s been known to migrate in the winter to the warm waters of Hawaii, so this girl gets around!
Our photo to the right
The white marking on a humpbacks tail change over time as they mature but the general patterns are unique to each whale .. and allow for identification to support research. The photo below shows the tail marking of three generations of this family … and the snap taken of Apollo’s tail yesterday! Fascinating!
Much to the boys’ delight their sighting of this magical giant was included on the MERS website and social media 😂.
As mum to three sons (and auntie to ten!) Sacha is kept busy trying to keep the kids alive, safe, fed and watered.
Having specialised in Child Psychology and Linguistics at the University of Reading, Sacha went on to complete her Postgraduate Certificate in Education before taking up her first teaching post as Head of Boys Sport and Year 6 teacher. After 6 years, Sacha was fortunate enough to awarded a travelling fellowship from the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust, enabling her to undertake an extensive research project overseas. Sacha has worked with some of the world's top professional sports and educational institutions across Canada, America, Australia and New Zealand - researching ways of engaging young people through the medium of sport and in particular how this can help to reduce drug use and gang membership.
After returning to the UK Sacha became Education Director at Ipswich Town Football Club, leading in the government's 'Playing for Success' scheme. She went on to establish three highly respected Study Centres back in the East of England, each of which used sport as a means of motivating children and young people. After successfully completing her National Professional Qualification for Headship in Cambridge, Sacha went on to study for her Masters Degree in Education.
With the arrival of her three sons, Sacha decided it was time to 'go it alone.' She set up her own business consultancy, supporting a range of charities and organisations across the UK. Securing funds in excess of £2 million pounds, Sacha was able to 'give wings' to a wide range of charitable causes close to her heart. She continues this today with work specifically for Child First Trust.
It was her own kids that were the inspiration behind her establishing Learning Academies (www.learningacademies.co.uk) - a tutoring company that has the simple mission to motivate and encourage its students to become confident and assertive learners who are not afraid to 'take risks' and challenge themselves.
As a passionate photographer, Sacha is never more at home than when she's travelling, camera in hand, boys in tow. As a qualified medic with the British Divers Marine Life Rescue, she is able to combine her love the outdoors with her passion for wild animals.
View all posts by Sacha Brakenbury
The beautiful humpback whale we were lucky enough to photograph in the ocean outside our lodge at Cape Mudge, on Quadra Island, has now been officially identified by the Marine Education Research Society as 9 year old female, Apollo!
Essex Boys in Canada 🇨🇦 