There might be a new calf in this endangered orca pod of the Salish Sea

It appears a new baby has been born to the L pod family of southern resident orcas, scientists reported Friday.

The new calf was photographed swimming off the coast of Tofino, British Columbia, alongside members of the L77 matriline. Wildlife photographer Howie Tom posted the photos on Facebook this week and the Orca Behavior Institute alerted the Center for Whale Research.

Michael Weiss, research director for the Center for Whale Research, confirmed the report Friday, saying the center believes the calf was born to the L12 subgroup. The baby’s sex is not yet known. They might be the first new calf in L pod since L125 was born in 2021.

“We’re always kind of cautiously optimistic with these new babies, because the mortality rate in the first year is quite high,” Weiss said. “But we’re hopeful — it’s good to have another L pod kid.”

According to the Center for Whale Research’s latest census, 73 southern resident orcas remain.

That’s one of the lowest population counts among the J, K and L pods of whales since 1974, when 71 orcas were counted following a live-capture fishery in the 1960s, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The population peaked at 98 in 1995, but declined by almost 20% in the late ‘90s, leaving 80 whales in 2001. 

The 2022 census found the L pod, composed of 32 orcas, at its lowest point since the study began in 1976. 

Discovering the new baby is the best news NOAA wildlife biologist Brad Hanson said he’s had all week.

“We wait months and months and months for calves to be potentially born,” Hanson added. “It’s very exciting to see this, because it’s been quite a while since we’ve had a calf born … All the work that we’ve been doing really is poured into trying to enhance recovery. And unfortunately it’s up to the whale to actually reproduce successfully.”

The new kiddo isn’t wrinkly, and doesn’t seem to have obvious fetal folds, Weiss said. They’re quite filled out, but they’re still a young calf. Researchers estimate the calf is at least 3 weeks old.

When the calf gets in the center’s survey area — near the San Juan Islands — researchers will try to confirm the calf’s existence, identify the mother and their sex. Researchers will assess the calf’s behavior and how they’re moving to get a better idea of their health and body condition.

The southern residents live in matriarchal families split in three pods: the J pod, K pod and L pod. They typically stay along the western coastal islands of Canada, Washington and the Oregon coast. 

The southern residents have an important role in the ecosystem because they’re at the top of the food chain.

In 2005, the southern residents were listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act and a recovery plan was finished in 2008.

In 2015, they became one of NOAA’s “Species in the Spotlight,” an effort to raise awareness and save “the most highly at-risk marine species.” 

Generally, the southern residents are struggling to survive in the face of at least three threats: lack of Chinook salmon in their foraging range, pollution and underwater noise that makes it harder for them to hunt.

Recent research revealed that with fewer Chinook salmon to eat, the southern resident orcas are visiting the San Juan Islands, their traditional summer home, less often.

Researchers documented a 75% drop in reported sightings of the southern residents from 2004 to 2020 around the San Juan Islands. That corresponded with a 50% decline in available Chinook, the orcas’ favorite food, from British Columbia’s Fraser River.

That study comes alongside recent research that found the southern resident females have less hunting success than their neighbors up north, and that a shrinking, increasingly inbred population of southern residents could be plummeting toward extinction.