Lummi Nation wants to feed endangered southern resident orcas
SEATTLE -- Following news that two more southern resident orcas are struggling, one Washington tribe is calling on the federal government to help physically feed them.Lummi Nation calls the southern resident orcas qwe 'lhol mechen, which means our relatives under the water.
Endangered orca J17's health in dramatic decline
SEATTLE -- The health of an endangered southern resident orca is in rapid decline, a stark reality captured by drone images this month.NOAA Fisheries first sounded the alarm on J17's health last September, but new aerials from May 6 show how much worse she has gotten since then.
Puget Sound dam jeopardizing salmon, endangered orcas
SOUTH KING COUNTY, Wash. -- The Green River is cut in half by two dams that keep adult salmon from going upstream to spawn and juveniles from migrating down to the ocean.
5 new laws aimed at recovering endangered southern resident orcas
OLYMPIA, Wash. -- Among nearly three dozen bills Gov.
How the Legislature's budget impacts endangered southern residents
SEATTLE -- Q13 News spoke with Robb Krehbiel of Defenders of Wildlife regarding the proposed state budget and how it could impact endangered southern resident orcas.We heard from Krehbiel on the biggest takeaways from the budget, a Snake River Stakeholder task force and where the budget fell short in protecting orcas.Watch the full interview with Krehbiel above.
Lummi tribe releases salmon to endangered orcas in sacred ceremony
SALISH SEA, Wash. -- This month, Lummi tribal leaders released a single Chinook salmon into the Salish Sea as a spiritual offering to the starving, endangered southern resident orcas.The symbolic feeding was also a message to government leaders that more needs to be done to save them from extinction.
SeaWorld publishes decades of orca data to help wild whales
he endangered killer whales of the Pacific Northwest live very different lives from orcas in captivity.
Puget Sound river ranked one of country's most endangered rivers
SEATTLE -- A river conservation group named the Green-Duwamish River one of the country's most endangered rivers of the year, coming in at No. 4 in a ranking released Tuesday.Each year, the group American Rivers ranks "America's Most Endangered Rivers." This year, the Gila River in New Mexico topped the list, followed by the Hudson River in New York and the Upper Mississippi River.The Green-Duwamish was last included on the list in 2016.
The Last Generation: Southern resident orcas in danger of extinction
The southern resident orcas are magnificent, iconic mammals in the Pacific Northwest. They've called these waters home for tens of thousands of years. And then we showed up.
Orca Pod-Cast Episode 1: The Last Generation of Southern Resident Orcas?
We begin with a mother orca's 17-day "tour of grief." How J35's display captured the attention of the world as she pushed her dead calf for more than 1,000 miles. And how Q13 News' Simone Del Rosario began diving deeper into the plight of the iconic killer whales.
Scientists: We can't save the southern resident orcas alone
Scientists are urging state legislators to take immediate action to save the southern resident orcas as four bills related to orca recovery make their way through the legislature.
Groups sue to restrict salmon fishing, help critically endangered Northwest orcas
Federal officials say they may restrict salmon fishing off the West Coast to help the Pacific Northwest's critically endangered killer whales, but two environmental groups are suing anyway to ensure it happens.
'Lucky,' the newest southern resident orca calf, seen swimming off California coast
Good news for our endangered southern resident orcas! L124, or "Lucky," the calf born in late December, was captured on video swimming with the L pod off the coast of California.
Whale watching industry defends viewing endangered southern resident orcas
FRIDAY HARBOR, Wash. -- It was billed as a “bold action” the state could take that would have an immediate impact on our struggling southern resident orcas, but it never gained support in the Legislature.This legislative session, Gov.
Money, time in short supply to save southern resident orcas
LACEY, Wash. -- Time and money are in short supply in the race to save the region's endangered southern resident orcas.One year ago this month, Gov.
Washington House, Senate pass bills limiting boat distance from endangered orcas
The Senate and House have each passed measures seeking to give the state's endangered orca population some space.
Bold proposals to save southern resident whales lose teeth in Legislature
OLYMPIA, Wash. -- Some of the boldest actions proposed in the Legislature to save the southern resident orcas appear dead in the water.Bills to restrict whale watching and impose new regulations on the lucrative industry passed out of committees in both state houses Thursday.However, HB 1580 and SB 5577 were watered down from their original versions, stripping some of what was intended to protect the whales from boat noise in order to help the orcas find Chinook salmon.There are only 75 southern resident killer whales left.
To help salmon migrate, state looks to spill more over dams
VANCOUVER, Wash. -- While federal officials consider breaching one or more dams in Washington to increase salmon survival, state officials are considering increasing spill over the dams to help more smolts survive in the meantime.If there is too little spill at hydrodams, more young, vulnerable salmon are sent down more dangerous turbines to get past them.
Study: Endangered orcas catch fish less than half their attempts
SEATTLE -- New research into the critically-endangered southern resident orcas shows that when they deep dive to catch salmon, they often come up empty.Lack of food is one of the leading threats to their survival.
Bill would restrict whale watching on southern resident orcas
OLYMPIA, Wash. -- A bill that would greatly restrict whale watching of endangered killer whales is making its way through the state capitol.House Bill 1580 is intended to increase the protection of the southern resident killer whale from boat noise, in order to help the whales find Chinook salmon.There are only 75 southern resident killer whales left.