Orca calf a new addition to local whale pod

It's official: Puget Sound's endangered orcas have another new baby to show off.

The whale is the newest member of J pod, and was spotted Tuesday along the west coast of San Juan Island by a volunteer at the Center for Whale Research in Friday Harbor. The birth of the calf, dubbed J-42, brings the population of southern resident orcas that calls Puget Sound home to 87.

With numbers that low, any birth is cause for celebration. But scientists caution not to read too much into it.

"What counts really in terms of recovery of the population is the overall trend over the long term," said Mike Ford, director of the conservation biology division for the Northwest Fisheries Science Center in Seattle.

But that doesn't make the birth any less thrilling, especially to those who have been lucky enough to see the baby whale.

"It's just a tiny little thing," said David Ellifrit, the volunteer who snapped the whale's picture Tuesday with its 35-year-old mother, J-16, and three siblings. Less than 4 days old, the whale still had fetal pleats in its skin when he saw it. Close enough to hear it breathe, Ellifrit said "it makes little puffs."

The whale seemed spry, and was keeping up with its mother as the family cruised northward. The youngster has the typical pale-orange-and-black coloration of newborn orcas; the orange will change to white as the whale matures.

Information

To learn more: Go to www.whaleresearch.com or

www.nwr.noaa.gov

The baby's gender has yet to be determined.

Meanwhile, National Marine Fisheries Service scientists headed out this week on a two-week research cruise in hopes of following the southern residents wherever they go. Scientists have had plenty of opportunity to observe the whales during the summer, but they still have much to learn about the whales' movements and habits during other seasons.

Weather permitting, researchers will board small boats to collect orca feces and remnants of their prey to learn what they are eating.

"We also want to see who is there, and who is with whom," Ford said. "One of the questions is if the different pods do different things."

Other research will get under way this summer to monitor underwater noise near the whales, and the orcas' reactions to it. Scientists are trying to learn if the whales are really bothered by whale-watching and other vessel traffic.

Lynda V. Mapes: 206-464-2736 or lmapes@seattletimes.com