Lora Grindlay, The Province
Published: Monday, January 11, 2010The New Year's baby killer whale was likely born Jan. 1 in the waters of Juan de Fuca Strait and was spotted off Seattle on Jan. 3.
Howard Garrett, director of the Whidbey Island-based Orca Network, said it's important to verify that the calf, a member of one of three southern resident-whale pods, has survived.
"We'll be eager to see," said Garrett. It's common that whales are not seen for weeks at a time at this time of year, he said. It is the sixth whale to be born to the southern resident whale pods in the past year. The pods are known as J, K and L.
The births follow a devastating year in 2008 when seven orcas from the pods, including two females of reproductive age, died. Garrett said the latest birth is an encouraging sign for the southern resident population that is now believed to consist of 88 whales. "We just had a real bad year and then a real good year."
The whales are often seen around Victoria, at the mouth of the Fraser River, in the Georgia Strait and have been sighted near the Queen Charlotte Islands. Garrett said there were 97 southern resident whales in 1995. "We're climbing back. In five years [after 1995], it dropped to 78 whales, and now we're up to 88, so we're half way to where we were in 1995," he said.
About 50 per cent of calves die in their first year of life. Garrett said the births and mortality rates of the whales are closely linked to the availability of chinook salmon, their meal of choice.
"That's really the predominant factor at work here," he said. "They are very picky eaters."
lgrindlay@theprovince.com
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