2016 Population Update - Southern Resident Killer Whales

As of October 29, 2016 the endangered Southern Resident killer whale population stands at 81 members across the three pods (J-Pod, K-Pod and L-Pod).J-Pod=27, K-Pod=19, L-Pod=35According to the Center for Whale Research, the following whales have been listed as missing and/or presumed deceased:L95 - Born in 1996, the 20-year-old male southern resident killer whale was found dead near Esperanza Inlet, B.C. on March 30, 2016. History: On February 24, 2016, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), was able to deploy a satellite tag on L95 off LaPush, Oregon. Subsequently, an expert panel determined that a fungal infection entered the orca's bloodstream at the spot where he was shot causing the animal's death. The fungus may have been introduced by a contaminated tag, or was already on whale's skin and brought deeper by fragments left behind in the animal's body, the examination found. NOAA has halted tagging activities until a full reassessment of the tag design and deployment is completed to reduce risk of this happening again. VIDEO: KIRO 7 Digital Anchor Siemny Kim  is joined by a NOAA biologist, Brad Hanson to talk about tagging.Final Necropsy Report: Final Report AHC Case: 16-1760.  Image: Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC). J14 - Born in 1974, the 42-year-old female southern resident killer whale was last seen from the water July 31, 2016, and was last photographed from land August 3, 2016.Prior to her disappearance, J14 did not show any signs of being sick or unhealthy which makes her death even more perplexing. J14 has three living offspring: daughters J37 and J40 and son J45.Image:  NMFS PERMIT: 15569/ DFO SARA 272 J28 - Born in 1993, the 23-year old female southern resident killer whale was last seen on October 19, 2016. J28 has one living offspring:  daughter J46. History:  J28 had her first known calf, a daughter J46, in November 2009 at sixteen years old. In January 2013 (three years after the birth of J46), a freshly dead neonate calf was found on Dungeness Spit and identified from DNA as belonging to J28 with the father most likely to have been L41. In December 2015, J28, had her second calf, a son J54.It is vital for us to understand that, 1. gestation of killer whales is approximately 17-months, and 2. that means J28 had only six months between the 2013 birth and the conception of the subsequent 2015 birth. Clearly, her body was compromised with back to back pregnancies which ultimately appears to have played a major role in her untimely death. Researchers suggest the immediate cause of death was due to septicemia.Image: Shari Tarantino | Orca Conservancy J54 - Born in December 2015, the 10-month old male southern resident killer whale was last seen in Haro Strait on October 23, 2016. According to researchers, J54, was in a state of delirium while sister, J46, and various other family members attempted to help him stay at the surface. While the outcome may not be positive, we refuse to give up hope on this little guy until we have confirmation that he's missing during the next encounter.Image:  NMFS PERMIT: 15569/ DFO SARA 272##

What can you do to help?

Stop Contributing to Real-Time Reports on Social Media

Orca Conservancy encourages a mandatory delay on 'real time' reports across social media outlets (Facebook, Twitter, etc) regarding the location of ENDANGERED Southern Resident killer whales (SRKW).  We are convinced, based on documentation from the local community, that these real-time reports encourage private boaters to search out this population.  We are committed to this endeavor and we will continue to track and document these offenses throughout the year until further notice. The purpose of the Endangered Species Act is to conserve threatened and endangered species and their ecosystems. A species is considered endangered if it is in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range. The listing of a species as endangered makes it illegal to "take" (harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, collect, or attempt to do these things) that species. Similar prohibitions usually extend to threatened species.It is just as scientifically important to know where they've been, compared to where they are right now.We greatly appreciate everyone that cares about this issue as much as we do. To report offenses, please send images, screen grabs and/or videos to: orcaconservancy@gmail.com / 206 379-0331. Image: October 24, 2016 - South Puget Sound 

Join Local Communities to Save Salmon

As the saying goes, 'No Fish - No Blackfish'. The endangered Southern Resident killer whales rely on Chinook salmon to survive.In every community, all across Washington, people have joined together to help protect and recover wild salmon. School children, civic leaders, tribal members, farmers, businesses, lawmakers, landowners, local governments, nonprofits, and neighbors are working together to reverse the problems that have brought many wild salmon runs to the brink of extinction. Click HERE  for more information about this community-based salmon recovery effort and how you can get involved with the lead entity in your local community.Southern Resident killer whales spend much of the summer in the inland waters of the Salish Sea, where they prey primarily on adult Chinook salmon returning to the Fraser River in Canada. We know less about their late summer and fall diet, but data indicates that it includes coho salmon in late summer and Puget Sound Chinook and chum salmon in fall. During summer forays to the outer coast the whales may also consume salmon from other stocks, such as from the Columbia River system.The Southern Resident population—protected under the Endangered Species Act since 2005—is clearly in trouble with a population that numbers only in the 80s.Genetically distinct for 700,000 years, they do not breed with other populations and are culturally distinct as well. The Southern Residents communicate in their own dialect and dine almost exclusively on salmon.The relative importance of Columbia and Snake River salmon compared to stocks from other major West Coast rivers such as the Fraser, Klamath, and Sacramento remains the focus of ongoing research.

Snake River Dams - Add Your Voice To Make A Difference

In May 2016 a federal judge in Portland wrote a scathing legal opinion calling for change to the broken status quo on the lower Snake River, and a historic opportunity is now dawning.

The judge ordered dam managers to write a new environmental study that weighs a range of alternatives, including lower Snake River dam removal. That process, which by law must include collection of public opinion, is unfolding between Sept. 30, 2016 and Jan. 17, 2017. There will also be 15 public hearings (full hearing schedule).

 Citizens of the Pacific Northwest are imperative to making this process succeed for the lower Snake River and the region's endangered wild salmon. Please click HERE, so you can be contacted to engage in this very important process as it unfolds, and to review the hearing schedule for an upcoming meeting near you.

Klamath River Dams - Removal in 2020!

In January 2016, Orca Conservancy, along with 17 national and international organizations stood very publicly in support of broad-based efforts to bring the Klamath dams down. Orca Conservancy has been saying all along of the importance of keeping the Southern Resident killer whales fed, and how the Klamath River salmon stocks are a mid-point link between the Columbia River and the Sacramento River.On April 6, 2016, The U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Department of Commerce, PacificCorp, and the states of Oregon and California signed an agreement, following a process administered by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), which is expected to remove four dams on the Klamath River by 2020, amounting to one of the largest river restoration efforts in the nation.Orca Conservancy continues to support this effort by working closely with Konrad Fisher, the Executive Director of the Klamath Riverkeeper.If you haven’t already, please join the Klamath Riverkeeper Rapid Response Network to stay engaged!

Fraser River

Canadians know that BC’s wild salmon face an uncertain future, and that wild salmon have never been more threatened by pollution, habitat loss, overfishing, and unsustainable aquaculture practices. Wild salmon need help. Make your voice count by joining with Watershed Watch to protect wild salmon.Watershed Watch Salmon Society was formed in 1998 by salmon advocates who had been active as analysts, writers, editors and ecologists for more than a decade. Watershed Watch believes that real changes in attitude and behaviour are based on understanding, and that significant understanding requires a broad and deep appreciation of a wide range of habitat, harvest, and management issues.