There is a new calf in the T36 pod already this year and we’ve had some excellent chances to see it on some of our trips this month! The mom is T36B (Tattertip) and the new calf is T36B4, her fourth offspring.
The calf was first documented around February 6 during a survey by the Ocean Wise Research team up in the Strait of Georgia, BC, Canada. The T36 pod has been spending some quality time lately in Puget Sound along with some other Bigg’s killer whale pods, and we’ve been excited to see this new arrival to the family on some of our trips. Here are some video clips from our tours on Feb 23 and 24 that show the new calf. The first two clips show the calf surfacing right next to mom, T36B, in the “typical” mom/calf formation. In the last clip the calf comes up for a breath right next to T137B (Tempest) while both pods were traveling together that day. The slow-motion video does not have any sound.
~ Photographer/ Naturalist Bart Rulon