Orca researchers hope the Southern Resident population can grow to 80 to 90 whales in the next 50 years, which experts say will help them breathe a sigh of relief.
Scientists have called Tahlequah's loss devastating, more so because the calf was a female, who could have one day potentially contributed to increasing the population of endangered killer whales.
“It’s a very tragic tour of grief,” Center for Whale Research founder Ken Balcomb told public broadcaster NPR at the time. The centre said the loss of the latest female newborn was “particularly ...