An orca refuses to abandon the body of its young and swims with it for days



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A killer whale named "J35" made a dramatic but breathtaking trek across the Pacific Northwest a few days ago. The 20-year-old orc has traveled no less than 240 km along the San Juan Islands and Vancouver, his dead baby lying on his nose, reports the New York Times . [19659002Ifresearchersrecognizethatorcssometimescarrythebodiesoftheircalves-asisalsocalledtheoffspringofsomemarinemammals-deadonthesurfaceofthewatertheyareneverthelesssurprisedatthelengthofthetriptheanimalwhichtheyconsidertobe"exceptionallylong"

"We know that this can happen, but this time the orca seems to be wandering, as if to prove that it does not give up," says Ken Balcomb. "Sometimes it bites the fin and pulls it out," says the scientist and head of the San Juan Island Whale Research Center, which has followed this population for more than 40 years.

"Calf flips and sinks because he does not have enough fat, it dives, picks it up and brings it to the surface. "

The Symbol of a Threatened Species

The Newborn would have died at birth Tuesday morning Offshore Victoria, British Columbia, says the American daily.

"I think she's just in mourning, not wanting to let her off, as if she's languishing in pain: 'but why, why, why?'", Says Ken Balcomb.

Defenders of the environment dread the drastic reduction in the number of killer whales in recent years in the Pacific region. The decline of this species and the shortage of hatchlings were mainly attributed to the depletion of salmon, their main prey, probably due to overfishing or climate. Inbreeding, noise pollution from shipping, and waste and other chemicals in the water could also explain this decline.

"The loss of a newborn killer whale from our population Southern resident killer whales endanger the stakes as we strive to protect these beautiful iconic animals from disappearing altogether, "tweeted Jay Inslee, the governor of Washington, this week.

Last May, Jay Inslee had gathered around a working group of southern residents, state representatives and local people to consider protection solutions for killer whales in the region.

"Everyone is devastated," he said. added. "It's very, very dramatic, sad, discouraging."

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