— from Vancouver Sun —
A new orca calf, dubbed J55, is spotted in the waters of Puget Sound. Mon., Jan. 18, 2016. (Courtesy NOAA)
The killer whale baby boom continues on the West Coast, where researchers have documented yet another new calf in the southern resident population.
The tiny new orca, estimated to be just a few days old, was first seen on Monday [Jan. 18] in Puget Sound with members of J pod and is the ninth live birth in the population since December 2014. The apparently healthy calf was seen close to two female whales, J14 and J37, so its mother has yet to be identified.
“The Southern Resident orca ‘baby boom’ is starting to sound like a long, sustained rumble, and it certainly is music to our ears,” Michael Harris, executive director of Pacific Whale Watch Association, said in a press release.
However, he noted that U.S. government scientists also observed a 20-year-old whale pushing out a dead neonate calf during their latest research trip. The expectant mother, J31, had never successfully delivered a calf before, and researchers suggest at least half of all baby orcas do not live to one year old.
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