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Saturday, October 21, 2006
At-risk orca calf is now presumed dead
Another Puget Sound orca is missing.
One of the calves born this summer whose mother was recently discovered to have vanished has disappeared, scientists said Friday. That brings the number of missing and presumed dead orcas to four and the total population to 86.
Orcas have tightly knit families, and researchers had hoped that the baby's aunt, who also had a calf, would be able to nurse and take care of the orphaned animal.
But when the rest of the orca's family was recently spotted, the baby was gone, said Ken Balcomb, senior scientist with the Center for Whale Research, based on San Juan Island.
"We assume that it didn't make it," he said. Whale watchers are urged to contact the Orca Network (866-ORCANET) if they see a baby orca on its own.
The local orca population is at risk of extinction and is protected under the federal Endangered Species Act. Key factors threatening orcas' survival include exposure to toxic chemicals that can weaken their immune system and reduce their reproductive ability; a shortage of their staple food, chinook salmon; the potential for a major oil spill; and boat traffic, which can impede their hunting ability.
Read more about the plight of orcas in a Seattle P-I special report at seattlepi.com/specials/brokenpromises.
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