TOFINO, British Columbia -- An orca calf that experts feared had died or was lost at sea is alive and healthy. It was spotted off the coast of British Columbia with its family.
The three-month-old calf, known as L-121, was feared to be lost after scientists spotted its pod off of the coast of Oregon but could not confirm a sighting of the baby.
Marcie Callewaert, with Victoria Marine Science Association, said that she recently spent a couple of hours with L-Pod and L-121 was present and as energetic as ever.
Since December, four calves from the Southern Resident Killer Whale population, which is comprised of the J, K, and L pods, have been born. The other calves, from the J-Pod, have been frequently sighted over the past several months.
Michael Harris, Executive Director of the Pacific Whale Watch Association, said that wild killer whales have a 50 percent mortality rate and half do not make it through their first year.
According to the Pacific Whale Watch Association, The L-Pod is considered the most precarious of the three pods. In 2012, a three-year-old female whale was found dead off of the coast of Washington while last October a baby born to the pod was lost in British Columbia.
The local orca population now stands at 81 with the addition of the four calves.
"Getting this news is another shot of hope," Harris said. "If that baby whale can make it, this population can."
