Commentary: Sympathy for whale mom Tahlequah not enough to save the orcas – Folio

August 16 2018

Federal emergency protection order needed to help conserve dwindling killer whale population in Pacific Northwest, argues environmental law expert.

Tahlequah, also known as J35, is one of 75 remaining southern resident killer whales that live in the Salish Sea off the coast of British Columbia and Washington state. For 17 days, Tahlequah carried the body of her dead calf on a 1,500-kilometre “tour of grief,” forgoing ordinary behaviours in favour of mourning the loss of her newborn.

Tahlequah’s tour of grief has captured international interest and has brought specific attention to the precarious future of the remaining southern residents. As Susan Casey pointedly observed in The New York Times, it is necessary to now turn this “shared sense of grief for this mother into an impetus to solve the problems plaguing the dwindling southern resident orca population.”

Read More: https://www.folio.ca/commentary–sympathy-for-whale-mom-tahlequah-not-enough-to-save-the-orcas/