Southern Resident orca mom mourns the loss of another calf

It’s been an emotional rollercoaster of a week for Southern Resident orcas. On Christmas Eve, J-pod and her mom Tahlequah welcomed a new female calf (J61) to the family but that excitement was short lived as it passed away on New Year’s Eve. People from the Pacific Northwest and around the world may remember Tahlequah from 2018. After her calf passed away, she carried it for over two weeks and 1,000 miles. Sadly, it looks like she’s doing it again with J61’s body.

Scientists and orca observers have confirmed Tahlequah has been seen recently with the calf’s body and it’s unknown how long she’ll carry it, but it’s clear she’s not ready to let go yet. The loss of J61 is horrible for the Southern Residents. Their population hovers around 70 individuals and because she was a female she someday could have had her own offspring. Her cause of death is unknown but the lack of a sustainable food sources like Chinook salmon and vessel noise and traffic have made it increasingly hard for these marine mammals to hunt and survive. Four problematic dams located along the Lower Snake River block countless Chinook salmon from reaching higher elevation spawning grounds, and if we’re to save Southern Resident orcas we also need to save salmon.

The silver lining in all of this is that another J-pod mom recently birthed a calf, J62, who is still alive and appears to be doing well. Our hearts go out to Tahlequah and the members of J-pod. You can read more about J61’s passing here.