Posts Tagged ‘Orca’
Tragic tale of the UK orcas facing extinction
If you watched David Attenborough’s Extinction: The Facts, you’ll have heard the tragic account of the group of orcas known as the West Coast Community. They face almost certain extinction because of human chemical pollution. These orcas spend their time between Scotland, Wales and Ireland and until 2016 it was believed that there were nine…
Read MoreWhy do female orcas live so long after they stop having babies?
Orcas are one of only five species known to experience menopause and females can live for many decades after their last calf. The only other mammals reported to exhibit this unusual life history strategy are short-finned pilot whales, belugas, narwhals and humans. The question of why females of any species should stop reproduction before the…
Read MoreMystery surrounds orca harassment of boats
Scientists are trying to work out why a pod of orcas have been damaging passing boats off the coasts of Spain and Portugal in recent weeks. Several boats have been targeted as they sailed through the region with the whales appearing to deliberately ram the boats’ hulls. Some have lost their rudders and steering as…
Read MoreTahlequah the orca has a new calf
Tahlequah (J35), an orca from the Southern Resident population, has given birth to a new calf (J57). They were seen swimming together at the end of last week by scientists from the Center for Whale Research. In 2018 Tahlequah made international headlines after she was seen swimming over 1000 miles over a period of two…
Read MoreTahlequah the orca is pregnant and I’m holding my breath
I felt such conflicting emotions when I heard the news that Tahlequah is expecting a new calf. You may remember Tahlequah as the orca who carried her dead baby for 17 days, setting social media alight and breaking hearts all over the world back in the summer of 2018. That summer was perhaps one of…
Read MoreTahlequah the orca is pregnant again
An orca living in the Northwest Pacific, who made international headlines two years ago after the death of her calf, is thought to be pregnant again. Tahlequah was seen carrying her dead calf around for over two weeks after the young whale died in 2018. She is a member of the J pod of endangered…
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