Watch: Orcas are dying in the Pacific Northwest. Here's why | Oceana
Home / Blog / Watch: Orcas are dying in the Pacific Northwest. Here’s why

November 9, 2018

Watch: Orcas are dying in the Pacific Northwest. Here’s why

Orca calf surfaces with its pod
Shutterstock/Monika Wieland Shields

 

Orcas are icons of the Pacific Northwest, but one population that frequents Washington’s Salish Sea is struggling to survive. 

The group, called southern residents, made national headlines this summer when a newborn calf died, and its mother carried the body for 17 days in apparent grief. A month later, a young female disappeared and is now presumed dead, reducing the endangered population to just 74 whales. 

Watch here to learn what sets southern residents apart, and why they’re in decline.