STAY CONNECTED: Have the stories that matter most delivered every night to your email inbox. Subscribe to our daily local news wrap.
By Canadian Press

Christmas baby for endangered southern resident killer whales

Dec 28, 2023 | 2:31 PM

A new calf has been born to the J pod of British Columbia’s endangered southern resident killer whales.

The U.S.-based Center for Whale Research says the calf was first spotted in Washington state’s Puget Sound on Dec. 26, and was a newborn since it wasn’t with the pod when it was observed three days earlier.

It says in a statement the calf was seen near an adult female known as J40, making her the likely mother, something researchers hoped to confirm.

The sex of the calf isn’t known.

Salmon-eating southern resident killer whales live in the Salish Sea off British Columbia and Washington in three pods known as J, K and L. 

An annual census by the Center for Whale Research put the southern resident population at 75 orcas this year, including 25 in J pod.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 28, 2023. 

The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press