Calf born to pod of endangered whales
Baby killer whale spotted off B.C.’s Gulf Islands
Researchers say there’s a new calf among the population of critically endangered killer whales that live in the waters of B.C.’s Gulf Islands and northern Washington State.
Ken Balcomb, founding director of the Center for Whale Research, said the calf was first spotted on Thursday, when TV stations in Seattle aired live aerial footage of several groups of killer whales in Puget Sound, and discerning viewers were able to see a very small orca among them.
Researchers confirmed the birth the next day, dispatching a team from San Juan Island that encountered the whales in the early morning as they exited Admiralty Inlet with the new baby.
The orca calf will be designated L124, signalling its connection to the L pod of southern resident killer whales, a clan comprised of three pods: J, K, and L.
In a photo provided to Postmedia, L124 can be seen following L25, the oldest living member of her pod.
L124 is the third calf born to a 31-year-old orca known as L77, though her first calf, born in 2010, did not survive its first year.
A female born to L77 in 2012 and now known as L119 did survive, in keeping with the survival rate for baby orcas, which is only about 50 per cent.
Balcomb said the newest youngster looks healthy. Its sex is not yet known, but researchers are hoping for a female, who could help replenish the southern resident killer whale population, which has dwindled to just 75.
The whales have been starving because of a lack of salmon, particularly their favoured chinook. Vessel noise and pollution have complicated their plight. No calf born in the last three years has survived.
One whale drew international attention when she carried her dead calf on her head for 17 days last summer. Two other orcas are known to be sick, and researchers fear they could die within months.