Tahlequah, the famous killer whale's new calf dead

Researchers on Puget Sound on Tuesday the 31st of December, found J61, the new calf born to mother orca Tahlequah, had not survived. But in a new turn of events, a new calf also had been born to J pod.

Biologists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Northwest Region in Seattle, was on the water with other researchers for a health survey of the endangered southern resident orcas and confirmed the news.

Tahlequah’s new calf was especially important as it was a female. Tahlequah is the mother orca who carried her calf that lived only a half-hour in 2018 in a journey of more than 1,000 miles and 17 days, stirring grief around the world, as she grieved the loss of her calf.

The mother and gender of the new calf is not yet confirmed.

Baby orcas always face long odds of survival. Tahlequah’s calf appeared to be having trouble from the start, with the mother often pushing her and carrying her and the baby not looking as lively as he might have expected, Hanson said, after getting a look at her last week.

Hopefully, Tahlequah’s new calf will survive against the odds.