southern resident killer whales

It has recently been learned that J14 Samish of the Southern Resident Killer Whale Population (SRKW) is missing and presumed dead. It is highly unusual for an individual orca to go off by themselves and leave their pod, especially a matriarch. At only only 42 years old, the loss of J14 is a surprising one for J pod.

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With the loss of J14 there are now only 82 orca’s left of the SRKW population. The recent gains from last years baby boom are being diminished quickly – so far this year we have seen the loss of L95, J55 and now J14.

From recent sightings and reports it now appears that J28 Polaris (only 23 years old) is very ill and looking emaciated in a recent encounter. Emaciation is typical sign of illness and/or starvation and can be seen when a whale starts to develop what is referred to as a “peanut head” (a loss of blubber behind the base of the skull) and is usually an indicator that death is not far off.

“Things are shaping up to be pretty bad.” said Ken Balcomb of the Center for Whale Research ” J28 is looking super gaunt, and I would say she is within days of her death”

While occasionally whales do recover from this condition, the possible loss of J28 will likely mean the loss of her newest calf J54. At only 7 months old J54 is not ready to survive on his own. It is possible that he will be adopted by another female in the group J28’s mom J17 Princess Angeline or sister J35 Tahlequah.

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J28 Polaris approx 12 days ago Copyright Eagle Wing Tours Naturalist Corinne McKay

SRKW Population

What can you DO to help:

Get Involved – volunteer for a shoreline cleanup in your area – tell organization why support or why you do not – write to your local government representative (send letters and emails)

Sign petitions:

Eat Sustainable

Choose Ocean Wise Seafood http://www.oceanwise.ca/
Check out David Suzuki’s Top 10 Susatinable Seafood List
Check out Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch

Become a Member of the Center for Whale Research – follow them on Facebook & Twitter

Adopt a Whale – check out The Whale Museum for more information

Follow Dam Sense on Facebook and check out their website damsense.org

Tweet to help Take down the dams

Read the following articles to learn more:

The Orcas are Starving by David Niewert
Breach dams, or its game over for salmon by Jim Waddell

Watch Free the Snake: Restoring America’s Greatest Salmon River – Jim Waddell lays out the reasons why the four lower Snake River dams must be breached

The Southern Resident Orca pod is making a comeback after almost three years without a successful birth, There has been a bit of a boom with four calves born since December 2014. The Orca calves, known as J50, J51, J52 and L121 can been seen frequently.

On July 4, whale watchers on an Eagle Wing Tours in Victoria got a show from J50. “J50 stole the show, and hearts, with more than 60 breaches as she and her family moved south in Haro Strait,” said Clint Rivers, a naturalist and photographer. “It’s like she just figured out how this breaching thing works and couldn’t stop. She was still breaching well into the evening.”

I’ll be making my first trip to Victoria in the near future and have decided to do not one but two whale watching tours with Eagle Wing Tours! It would be amazing to see one of the new Orca calves, however just having the opportunity to see these incredible mammals on their own terms and in their environment will be an experience of a life time. Stay tuned for photos from my trip – but for now enjoy the photos below of J50