New baby orca thrills whale watchers
Newborn orca L-116 has been spotted in the waters between the Saanich Peninsula and San Juan Island.
Erin Heydenreich / Center for Whale Research
By Jeff Nagel - BC Local News
October 20, 2010 5:25 PM
A tiny black dorsal fin has whale watchers off the south coast celebrating the birth of a new orca calf.
The newly spotted addition to the southern resident killer whales that frequent the Salish Sea is designated L-116 and researchers don't yet know if the baby is a boy or a girl.
"The first day we saw it was on Oct. 13," said Erin Heydenreich of the Centre for Whale Research in Friday Harbour, Washington.
"It looked to be about a week or less old from what we can see and it seems to be healthy so far."
The baby whale has so far been spotted with its mother and other members of L pod mainly near the Canada-U.S. border between San Juan Island and the Saanich Peninsula.
It's the first baby for 20-year-old mom Kasakta (L-82) but researchers won't get their hopes up high or give the newborn a name until it's survived at least a year.
One previous new calf born earlier this year died within days and half of all newborns die within a year.
Another born into L pod in August is doing well so far.
They bring the southern resident orca population up to 86 now, according to Heydenreich.
That's an improvement, but still well off the historic peak of about 120 whales ranging Puget Sound and southern B.C. waters.
A pair of older males died earlier this year.
The fate of local orcas is tied heavily to their food supply, particularly salmon, and there's continuing concern about the long-term effect of various chemical toxins.
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