Baby orca spotted in Washington waters, in the Strait of Juan de Fuca near Salmon Bank was recently announced by the Center for Whale Research (CWR). Whale researchers are now celebrating the baby orca spotted in Washington waters, which experts said Monday is the first orca born to a population of endangered killer whales in the region in two years.
According to the Associated Press, Ken Balcomb with the CWR said one of their researchers named Dave Ellifrit came across the newborn orca on Saturday. Ellifrit was reportedly doing a routine photo identification of whales and had the baby orca spotted in Washington waters.
The AP reports that the CWR keeps a census of the killer whales.
Apparently, Ellifrit saw the baby orca spotted in Washington waters swimming in between two adult females, which the center presumed to be the whale's mom and aunt.
Balcomb said, "Tucked between two adult females in L pod was a very small newborn killer whale that still had creases on its side due to 'fetal folds', indicating it was probably less than one week old."
According to Q13 Fox News, the adult female whales that surrounded the baby orca spotted in Washington waters were L27 (age about 50) and L86 (age 23). L86 is reportedly presumed to be the baby's mother because of her age and reproductive history, said the center.
The center said, "The older female, L27, had produced four known babies during the course of our studies, none of which have survived."
They added, "Her most recent known baby was born in 1995 and it survived until 1998. The cause of death for the babies is unknown, and L27 has presumably reached menopause that occurs around age 40 in killer whales."
The baby orca spotted in Washington waters off San Juan is, according to multiple reports, the population's first calf born since 2012, and Balcomb said its age could be less than a week old since its dorsal fin was upright and not folded over.
Meanwhile, the gender of the baby orca is still unknown, said researchers. However, they estimate its birth to be early September 2014.
The orcas, also known as killer whale, have come to symbolize the Pacific Northwest, according to the AP. They are found in many parts of the ocean, but they can only be found in Puget Sound, Washington state waters in the U.S.
Their primary food is fish and they reportedly travel in three families, or the J, K and L pods. These whales often spend their time together with their pods.
The birth of the baby orca spotted in Washington waters is reason for celebration, said Balcomb. Indeed, the baby orca spotted near the San Juan Islands, about 70 miles (113 km) northwest of Seattle, pleased researchers, reports Reuters.
However, Balcomb said he is concerned for its future, especially as orcas are still struggling to survive in the wild because of pollution and lack of food, among other reasons.
According to Balcomb, the newborn has a 50 percent survival rate, down from 60 percent if it were bron two decades ago.
"If we took the historical average of having a calf every 5.2 years, we should have three to four babies every year. We haven't seen that in a while," said Balcomb.
According to the AP, baby orca spotted in Washington water has brought the number of killer whales in the Puget Sound population to 79. The few numbers is the only known existing population of orcas in the United States, according to Balcomb and NOAA.
The southern resident killer whales amounted to 140 decades ago, but in the 1970s, the numbers dropped to 71 since they were captured in large quantities to be displayed at marine parks and aquariums across the country.
According to the AP, in 2005 the species was listed as endangered since in the early 2000s, efforts began to conserve them.
According to philanthropist and petition website care2.com, orcas have had their own share of the spotlight in recent years.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) released a report in July which showed that even with their protection under the Endangered Species Act, their population is still in decline. Several threats to the orca population include military sonar exercises, boat traffic, sewage disposal, pollution of their habitat and especially lack of chinook salmon, which is their main food source.
Last month, a report also came out that two L pod members, 37-year-old L53 (Lulu) and 13-year-old L100 (Indigo), were killed. The deaths brought the orca population down once more, shrinking to 78, which is reportedly the lowest it's been since 1985.
Meanwhile, salmon over fishing is reported to be the main reason for the death of orcas, since salmon is part of their staple diet, said experts.
Balcomb also said that in 2012, a 3-year-old female died under questionable circumstances during military exercises in the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
Killer whales are known for their arresting black and white exteriors. They are also highly intelligent and social creatures that rely on underwater sonar for several functions such as orientation, feeding and communication.
According to the NOAA, they communicate through whistles and pulsed calls and maintain group cohesion or "pods" throughout their lifetime, reports Reuters.
Balcomb said Monday, "The resident orcas that eat salmon are declining because the salmon population is also endangered. What we have to do is get really serious about wild salmon restoration and recovery, which is the food supply for these guys."
He added, "What's the issue here? Overharvests? Dams? Military exercises? What? We have to figure it out."
Baby orca spotted in Washington waters is welcome news and shows there is still hope for the orcas' population recovery.
More photos of the baby orca spotted in Washington waters taken by CWR biologist Dave Ellifrit can be seen here. To know more about helping the orca population, you can also visit the Center for Whale Research and check out updates on the baby on CWR's Facebook page.
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