An endangered killer whale appeared to have given birth to a baby orca, scientists reported.
The Center for Whale Research announced on Facebook that the organization has been alerted regarding the photos taken by wildlife photographer Howie Tom regarding the new calf swimming off the coast of Tofino, British Columbia.
They added that the baby orca seems to be more than three weeks old and would be the first new calf since the birth of L123 in 2021.
"CWR researchers will need to conduct on-the-water encounters with this group to determine who the calf's mother is, assess its health, and assign it an alpha-numeric designation," the group said.
Scientists are hopeful
The news has brought optimism to scientists waiting for the potential birth of a new calf.
National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration wildlife biologist Brad Hanson said this is the best news he had all week.
"It's very exciting to see this, because it's been quite a while seen we've had a calf born... All the work that we've been doing really is poured into trying to enhance recovery," Hanson told the Seattle Times.
According to the latest data, there are only 73 southern resident orcas designated as J, K, and L pods.
With only 32 individuals, the July 2022 census represents the lowest L pod census since the study began in 1976. K pod has 16 individuals, and J pod has 25 individuals.
They normally stay along the western coast of Canada and Washington in the Salish Sea, and along the Oregon coast.
The J, K, and L pod populations were severely depleted in the 1960s and early 1970s as a result of whale captures for marine parks' exhibits. At least 13 orcas were killed by the abductors, while 45 whales were sent to parks across the world.
In 2005, the southern residents were listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act, and in 2008, the recovery plan was concluded.
"We're always kind of cautiously optimistic with these new babies, because the mortality rate in the first year is quite high," Michael Weiss, research director for the Center for Whale Research, told The Seattle Times. "But we're hopeful - it's good to have another L pod kid."
Read Also: Scientists Baffled At Mysterious Mass Whale Strandings In Northeast Atlantic
Struggling to survive
One of the reasons for the decline of the southern resident orca population is a lack of food.
According to the Endangered Species Coalition, most orcas eat Chinook salmon, which makes up more than 80% of their diet.
An average southern resident orca must consume 18-25 salmon daily to meet its energy requirements; however, there is a decline in the Chinook salmon population.
This also leads to two-thirds of orca pregnancies failing due to nutritional stress.
Another study shows a 75% drop in sightings of southern residents from 2004 to 2020 around the San Juan Islands, their traditional summer home, due to the lack of Chinook salmon to eat.
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