Orca

A two-year-old female orca calf, named kwiisahi?is, or Brave Little Hunter, by the Ehattesaht First Nation, is spotted at the Little Espinosa Inlet near Zeballos, B.C., Friday, April 19, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito

Orphan orca’s extended family spotted off northeast side of Vancouver Island

Calf, last seen on May 10, not spotted with them

 

A reported sighting of an orca pod off Vancouver Island near where an orphan killer whale is spending her time after escaping from a lagoon has an expert expressing caution and downplaying a possible family reunion. A two-year-old female orca calf, named kwiisahi?is, or Brave Little Hunter, by the Ehattesaht First Nation, is spotted at the Little Espinosa Inlet near Zeballos, B.C., Friday, April 19, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito

Pod spotted relatively near orphan B.C. orca, experts express caution

Calf named kwiisahi?is had been trapped since March in a tidal lagoon near Zeballos

 

The orphaned orca calf who has been stranded in a lagoon in the northeastern part of Vancouver Island swam past the sand bar her mother died on and exited the lagoon early in the morning on Friday. A two-year-old female orca calf is seen swimming in the Little Espinosa Inlet near Zeballos, B.C., Friday, April 19, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito

Orca’s escape from B.C. lagoon will be talked about for ‘generations,’ say Nations

The orca has been the focus of intense rescue efforts since March 23

 

South Surrey’s Paul Cottrell, who works with the DFO, tows a grey whale out of Semiahmoo Bay in April 2021. (Contributed photo)

B.C. rescuer says ‘very short window’ to return orphan whale to its family

Marine mammal expert Paul Cottrell working in the field near Zeballos to help stranded calf

  • Apr 2, 2024
South Surrey’s Paul Cottrell, who works with the DFO, tows a grey whale out of Semiahmoo Bay in April 2021. (Contributed photo)
Community members tried to save a beached mother orca near the village of Zeballos on Vancouver Island on Saturday, March 24, 2024. (Screenshot/Tracy Smith/Facebook)

Mother orca dies after becoming beached on northern Vancouver Island

Community members attempted to save the whale, but couldn’t get her back in the water in time

Community members tried to save a beached mother orca near the village of Zeballos on Vancouver Island on Saturday, March 24, 2024. (Screenshot/Tracy Smith/Facebook)
A photo of an orca from what researchers are calling a new population of the marine mammals is shown in this undated handout photo. University of British Columbia researchers say the pod of 49 orcas could belong to a unique oceanic population found near California and Oregon. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO — University of British Columbia

Sperm whale-hunting orcas may be a new population: UBC study

Killer whales reported attacking world’s biggest predators on the West Coast for the first time

A photo of an orca from what researchers are calling a new population of the marine mammals is shown in this undated handout photo. University of British Columbia researchers say the pod of 49 orcas could belong to a unique oceanic population found near California and Oregon. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO — University of British Columbia
The Center for Whale Research celebrates reports and photos from Puget Sound killer whale researchers Maya and Mark Sears of a new calf with J pod on Dec. 26. (Maya Sears NMFS Permit 27052/Center for Whale Research)

Newborn resident Salish Sea orca missing and presumed dead: researchers

Calf known as J60, first observed around Christmas, has not been seen with its family

The Center for Whale Research celebrates reports and photos from Puget Sound killer whale researchers Maya and Mark Sears of a new calf with J pod on Dec. 26. (Maya Sears NMFS Permit 27052/Center for Whale Research)
A Biggs calf was seen near the T46B2 pod of killer whales on Dec. 5. They are born orange, which is a mystery to scientists. (Eagle Wing Tours/Tomis Filipovic)

Scientists rejoice as new Biggs killer whale calf seen in Salish Sea

The new calf will join a curious, matriarchal pod

A Biggs calf was seen near the T46B2 pod of killer whales on Dec. 5. They are born orange, which is a mystery to scientists. (Eagle Wing Tours/Tomis Filipovic)
Photo by Orca Network

Toxin pockets along B.C. coast raising red flags for salmon and orcas

High levels of mercury, cadmium, lead and copper in critical habitats compounding concern

  • Nov 27, 2023
Photo by Orca Network
Bigg’s orcas identified by Comox Valley Wildlife Sightings as T049A1, T124s and T090s were spotted hunting off Point Holmes and Kye Bay earlier this year. (File photo by Ella Smiley/Comox Valley Wildlife sightings)

‘Bigg’ month for orca sightings off Vancouver Island

With 2 months still to go, 2023 already setting record for Bigg’s sightings in a year

Bigg’s orcas identified by Comox Valley Wildlife Sightings as T049A1, T124s and T090s were spotted hunting off Point Holmes and Kye Bay earlier this year. (File photo by Ella Smiley/Comox Valley Wildlife sightings)
Southern resident killer whale K34 has not been seen during the Center for Whale Research’s last three encounters with K Pod. (Center for Whale Research/Facebook)

Waters off Vancouver Island being watched for missing orca

Missing orca most likely dead but whale groups still holding out hope

Southern resident killer whale K34 has not been seen during the Center for Whale Research’s last three encounters with K Pod. (Center for Whale Research/Facebook)
In this photo provided by biologist and wildlife advocate Kersti Muul, people watch a whale swimming by a Seattle’s Lincoln Park, on April, 2021. Muul created a Salish Wildlife Watch, a WhatsApp group chat that alerts people to when whales are in the area, prompting many people to race to shorelines to try to catch a glimpse of the giant marine mammals. (Kersti Muul via AP)

In Seattle, phones ding. Killer whales could be close.

Salish Wildlife Watch, a WhatsApp group chat, alerts its 1,800 members when orcas are near

In this photo provided by biologist and wildlife advocate Kersti Muul, people watch a whale swimming by a Seattle’s Lincoln Park, on April, 2021. Muul created a Salish Wildlife Watch, a WhatsApp group chat that alerts people to when whales are in the area, prompting many people to race to shorelines to try to catch a glimpse of the giant marine mammals. (Kersti Muul via AP)
Campbell River’s Discovery Pier, Friday, July 14, 2023. Photo by Alistair Taylor/Campbell River Mirror

VIDEO: Pod of orcas, including calves, swarm Vancouver Island pier

A group of people who got the thrill of a lifetime July 10

Campbell River’s Discovery Pier, Friday, July 14, 2023. Photo by Alistair Taylor/Campbell River Mirror
Killer whales surface in Chatham Sound near Prince Rupert, B.C., Friday, June, 22, 2018. British Columbia’s southern resident killer whales are increasingly suffering from skin diseases that leave large blotches on their distinctive black-and-white colouration, new research says. THE CANADIAN PRESS Jonathan Hayward

Skin lesions on endangered killer whales are getting worse, study says

Scientists hypothesize it could be an indicator of the whales’ declining ability to fend off illness

Killer whales surface in Chatham Sound near Prince Rupert, B.C., Friday, June, 22, 2018. British Columbia’s southern resident killer whales are increasingly suffering from skin diseases that leave large blotches on their distinctive black-and-white colouration, new research says. THE CANADIAN PRESS Jonathan Hayward
In a image from video provided by The Ocean Race, an orca moves along a rudder of the Team JAJO entry in The Ocean Race on Thursday, June 22, 2023, as the boat approached the Strait of Gibraltar. A pod of killer whales bumped one of the boats in an endurance sailing race, the latest encounter in what researchers say is a growing trend of sometimes-aggressive interactions with Iberian orcas. No one was injured. (The Ocean Race via AP)

Orcas disrupt boat race near Spain in latest display of dangerous, puzzling behavior

The 15-min run-in with at least 3 orcas forced the crew competing to drop its sails, raise a clatter

In a image from video provided by The Ocean Race, an orca moves along a rudder of the Team JAJO entry in The Ocean Race on Thursday, June 22, 2023, as the boat approached the Strait of Gibraltar. A pod of killer whales bumped one of the boats in an endurance sailing race, the latest encounter in what researchers say is a growing trend of sometimes-aggressive interactions with Iberian orcas. No one was injured. (The Ocean Race via AP)
A lone killer whale breaks the water in a Comox, B.C., harbour on Tuesday July 31, 2018.Transport Canada has announced several new measures, ranging from sanctuary zones to fishing closures, as it works to protect critically endangered southern resident killer whales off the British Columbia coast. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jen Osborne

Protected areas, fishing bans to help B.C.’s threatened southern resident orcas

Federal government announces series of measures off B.C. south coast

A lone killer whale breaks the water in a Comox, B.C., harbour on Tuesday July 31, 2018.Transport Canada has announced several new measures, ranging from sanctuary zones to fishing closures, as it works to protect critically endangered southern resident killer whales off the British Columbia coast. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jen Osborne
In this July 31, 2015, file photo, an orca whale breaches in view of Mount Baker, some 60 miles distant, in the Salish Sea in the San Juan Islands, Washington State. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Elaine Thompson

Florida aquarium returning Lolita the orca to the Salish Sea after 53 years in tank

Lolita, 57, is part of the endangered southern resident killer whales pod

In this July 31, 2015, file photo, an orca whale breaches in view of Mount Baker, some 60 miles distant, in the Salish Sea in the San Juan Islands, Washington State. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Elaine Thompson
FILE - Southern Resident killer whale J50 and her mother, J16, swim off the west coast of Vancouver Island near Port Renfrew, B.C. on Aug. 7, 2018. (Brian Gisborne/Fisheries and Oceans Canada via AP, File)

Researchers: Inbreeding a big problem for endangered orcas

Whales are so inbred that they are dying younger and their population is not recovering

FILE - Southern Resident killer whale J50 and her mother, J16, swim off the west coast of Vancouver Island near Port Renfrew, B.C. on Aug. 7, 2018. (Brian Gisborne/Fisheries and Oceans Canada via AP, File)
A Fisheries and Oceans Canada boat practicing using their oikomi pipes to deter marine life during the fuel spill response to a sunken fishing boat on August 25, 2022. (Courtesy of NOAA Northwest Fishers Science Centre)

Coordinated response helped protect orcas during fuel spill off B.C. coast: NOAA

U.S. and Canadian agencies worked together to deter orcas from the affected areas

A Fisheries and Oceans Canada boat practicing using their oikomi pipes to deter marine life during the fuel spill response to a sunken fishing boat on August 25, 2022. (Courtesy of NOAA Northwest Fishers Science Centre)
Southern resident J-pod orcas were spotted challenging the currents in Dodd Narrows off Joan Point Park around mid-day on Feb. 14. (Submitted photo)

VIDEO: J-pod orcas ride a fast ocean current in a narrow passage off Nanaimo

Runner captures video of southern resident killer whales in Dodds Narrows on Feb. 14

  • Feb 16, 2023
Southern resident J-pod orcas were spotted challenging the currents in Dodd Narrows off Joan Point Park around mid-day on Feb. 14. (Submitted photo)