An endangered orca off the US Pacific Northwest coast that made global headlines in 2018 for carrying her dead calf for more than two weeks is doing so once again after the death of her new calf, In another sign of grief over the loss of offspring, researchers said.
The mother orca, known as Tahlequah or J35, has been seen carrying the body of the deceased calf since Wednesday, the Washington state-based Center for Whale Research said in a Facebook post.
The orca known as J35 (Tahlequah) carries the carcass of her dead calf in the waters of Puget Sound off West Seattle, Washington. Credit: AP
“The entire team at the Center for Whale Research is deeply saddened by this news and we will continue to provide updates when we can,” the post said.
In 2018, researchers observed J35 pushing her dead calf for 17 days, holding it for more than 1,600 kilometers. The calf had died shortly after birth, and the mother and her close-knit group of whales were seen taking turns carrying the carcass.
The research center said about two weeks ago that it had become aware of the new calf. But on Christmas Eve, he said he was worried about the calf’s health because of its behavior and that of its mother.
Charging
On New Year’s Day, officials with the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration were able to confirm that J35 was carrying the carcass of her calf, said Brad Hanson, a research scientist with the federal agency.
Hanson, who was able to observe its behavior from a boat on Wednesday, said J35 was covering the dead calf on its snout or on top of its head, and appeared to dive for it when it sank from the surface. He said the calf had only been alive for “a handful of days.”
“I think it’s fair to say she’s grieving or mourning,” Joe Gaydos, scientific director of SeaDoc at the University of California, Davis, said of J35. Similar behavior could also be observed in other socially cohesive animals with relatively long lifespans, such as primates and dolphins, he said.
