A killer whale, which captured the world’s attention in 2018 when it was noticed pushing the useless physique of its new child calf for 17 days, seems to be grieving once more.
The whale, often called Tahlequah, has misplaced one other calf and is once more pushing the physique, in line with the Heart for Whale Analysis.
Tahlequah has this time been noticed off the coast of Washington state within the US.
Killer whales have been recognized to hold useless calves for per week however scientists in 2018 mentioned Tahlequah had set a “file”.
The Center for Whale Research said the loss of life of any calf was a “great loss” however added that the loss of life of Tahlequah’s new child was “notably devastating” given its historical past.
The centre, which research the Southern Resident killer whale and works on its conservation, mentioned Tahlequah had now misplaced two out of 4 documented calves – each of which had been feminine.
Each Canada and the US checklist Southern Resident killer whales as endangered.
The whales rely on Chinook salmon – which have been in dramatic decline in recent times – for meals.
Failures to breed are linked to diet and entry to those salmon, in line with research from the University of Washington.
Whales can journey a mean of 120km (75 miles) a day.
The 2018 sighting of Tahlequah pushing a useless calf occurred when it was off the shores of Victoria, British Columbia.
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, 2025-01-03 04:11:00
