Wild Orca News

Pod of orcas seen in Gulf of Mexico | WTSP.com

Killer whales were spotted only 50 miles off the coast of Louisiana. Orcas are native to the Gulf of Mexico but they tend to stay out in the deeper waters far from shore. Scientists at the Institute for Marine Mammal Research in Gulfport, Mississippi are questioning whether this is a sign that something is going on with their habitat.
 
Granny the supposedly 105 year old SR has been sighted in the past few days. I say supposedly because I'm convinced her age has likely been exaggerated by at least a few decades.

Oldest known living southern resident orca spotted in ?high spirits? | KIRO-TV

I hope she washes up somewhere when she dies so we can find how old she really is, rather than just speculation.

In other news, a group wants the salmon fishery in Puget Sound shut down n order to increase the food supply for the SR:

Close salmon fisheries to save B.C. orcas, group urges | CTV Vancouver Island News

Also, the SR recently disappeared briefly during a gathering of Humpbacks:

http://www.cheknews.ca/196436-196436/
 
wensleydale said:
ingrid visser's behavior during the recent stranding of the Orca "Bob" is being criticized by Loro Parque:

Blog Loro Parque Blog Archive Orca calf dies under the amateurish handling by Dr. Ingrid Visser

Also by this facebook group:

https://www.facebook.com/delfinarien/posts/1948904948669723

And by Awesome Ocean:

Tragedy: Did Ingrid Visser's Actions Lead to a Dead Baby Orca?

It's very ironic that visser doesn't do necropsies of her changes while the people she endlessly criticizes do.
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The necropsy thing wasn't her choice to make. I think it's New Zealand law that Maori get to choose what to do with it.
 
I cannot help but agree the whole episode with orca strandings and the techniques used by Messrs. Visser et al are unprofessional.
 
Another Puget Sound orca dies; hope dim for her calf

Terrible news for the Southern Residents. Polaris, who has been showing signs of malnutrition for a while, is dead. Her calf, J54 Dipper, is likely soon to follow, if he isn't already dead. Even with the recent baby boom, things won't get better for the Southern Residents if Chinook salmon populations don't go up. None of the other whales in the pod are showing malnutrition, so it is possible that a medical problem contributed to her death.
 
TheMightyOrca said:
Another Puget Sound orca dies; hope dim for her calf

Terrible news for the Southern Residents. Polaris, who has been showing signs of malnutrition for a while, is dead. Her calf, J54 Dipper, is likely soon to follow, if he isn't already dead. Even with the recent baby boom, things won't get better for the Southern Residents if Chinook salmon populations don't go up. None of the other whales in the pod are showing malnutrition, so it is possible that a medical problem contributed to her death.
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How sad. I hope she didn't suffer too much and if Dipper is going to go it happens quickly so that he doesn't suffer too much as well.

I'm starting to wonder if the SR population deserve its own thread, given the notability of the population and the volume of news about them.
 
wensleydale said:
How sad. I hope she didn't suffer too much and if Dipper is going to go it happens quickly so that he doesn't suffer too much as well.

I'm starting to wonder if the SR population deserve its own thread, given the notability of the population and the volume of news about them.
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He has been so weak that his sister and cousin were seen trying to support him to keep him above the water. Poor thing was totally covered in rake marks from this, researchers seem certain that he's already dead.

FOR THE WHALES | The final moments of 10 month-old-J054 “Dipper” as...

Researchers and activists are using these deaths to further promote efforts to bring down the Snake River Dam in hopes of bringing more salmon to this population.
 
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