Beneath a sky so blue it nearly stole the show, Phyllis made her appearance near Gull Island—her back rising and dipping in a gentle rhythm, with the world quiet except for the pulse of the Atlantic around her.

On a fine July day in 2026, Phyllis was spotted where wheat-coloured puffins criss-cross above green seas, not far from the rugged cliffs of Gull Island. That day’s excitement was doubled, for trailing closely in her slipstream was a tiny calf. It’s a rare and heart-lifting sight—a new mother steering her little one through the sheltered bays and open sprays of Newfoundland and Labrador.

The sea was glassy, nearly humming with midsummer warmth, and seabirds cartwheeled overhead as Phyllis surfaced and exhaled a mist that sparkled in the sun. With each breath, she traced new beginnings—a mother teaching her calf the ancient paths from feeding ground to open ocean.

While tales of whales often go on for years, Phyllis’s short but sweet appearance with her young companion left all who witnessed it grinning ear to ear. Perhaps she’s wandered these waters plenty before, her stories just not caught until now, or maybe she’s just started her family’s journey along the coast.