Scientists and First Nations are holding out hope that a young killer whale that escaped a North Island tidal lagoon after her mother beached and died is still alive, almost a year after the incident grabbed worldwide headlines.
Jared Towers of Bay Cetology, a leading researcher who was involved in the rescue efforts through late March and April last year, said Monday there is still hope for the young orca.
After she was led out of the lagoon on April 26, she was photographed alone around Nootka Sound in May, June, July and August. There were other sightings as late as November, but those were unconfirmed, Towers said.
He is optimistic, however, that as the days grow longer and the weather improves, more boats on the water will mean sightings through the spring and summer.
The confirmed sightings that did come in indicated the orca was finding food on her own, said Towers. “It’s a sign to us that she was fairly independent and somewhat innovative, which is not always the case for a young killer whale. That gave us a lot of hope moving forward.”
The two-year-old female orca, nicknamed Kwiisahi?is, or Brave Little Hunter, by the Ehattesaht/Chinehkint First Nation, came to international attention a year ago when she refused to leave her mother, who drowned after getting stuck on a gravel bar.
The Bigg’s killer whale, later determined to be pregnant with another female calf, had likely been hunting a seal in the shallow water when she ran aground and was unable to free herself.
After 41/2 weeks trapped by low tides and only a narrow opening to freedom under a road bridge in the Little Esperenza Inlet near Zeballos, the little orca was eventually coaxed out by offerings of sea lion meat from First Nations.
It was hoped that the orca would connect with her family line, the T109As, led by her grandmother, known as Frio/Runaway. That line travels in four groups with about 20 members and ranges from northeast Alaska down the B.C. coast and around Vancouver Island and south to Washington.
They have been sighted several times in the Tahsis Inlet area — where the little orca, officially known as T109A3A, was last seen — around Haida Gwaii, Alert Bay and as far south as Victoria’s Inner Harbour last October. But Brave Little Hunter has not been with them in any confirmed sightings.
“At this point, a reunion with her natal pods isn’t looking like it’s likely or it just hasn’t happened yet, which is surprising because they are showing up on that part of the coast where Kwiisahi?is has been seen,” said Towers.
Towers noted that Brave Little Hunter’s grandmother has a new calf, which could be an issue with her reconnection to the little orca. “We feel that the cost of taking on an orphan would be even higher at this point than it was before. That may be part of the reason she’s not showing up with them.”
Young killer whales separated from their pods have survived in the past, including Springer, a northern resident killer whale that was separated from the family line in 2002, captured in a sea pen near Seattle and brought back to the Island near Alert Bay and released into the wild.
“It took a while for her to integrate, but she did and she’s alive and doing well with two offspring of her own,” said Towers, noting Springer was the same age as Brave Little Hunter at time.
In 2013, a three-year-old Bigg’s orca — T46C2 — was separated from his mother on the north coast. He never rejoined his mother, said Towers, but reintegrated with another orca community and now has several preferred travel partners, some of which are maternally related, some not. “He’s still alive and doing quite well.”
Such cases “give us hope,” said Towers.
The Bigg’s, or transient, killer whale population that ranges along the B.C. coast is at about 380 animals and considered under threat in Canada due to high levels of toxins in their bodies from being high on the food chain, Towers said.
He said every time an animal is lost, it’s a hit to the future of the population. “[Brave Little Hunter’s mother] was not only young and really had a potentially long life with several calves in front of her, but she was also pregnant at the time with another female,” said Towers. “So it’s a heartfelt tragedy for all of us.”
Bay Cetology is encouraging those out on the water to photograph killer whales they see — while keeping the required distance — using good cameras that clearly show dorsal fins and saddle or eye patches, which are unique on each orca.
The information is fed into a photo identification database called Finwave, developed and managed by Towers and the Bay Cetology group. Finwave was launched in the summer of 2023 with more than 500 contributors who tested it. It was opened to the public last month.
The database is likely the place where Brave Little Hunter, if alive, will be identified.
Finwave is invaluable because it can track entire populations, said Towers, adding users can see the T109A pods’ range, for example — the places they’ve been seen and who they travel with.
“It’s allowed us to track killer whales through space and time, their status, longevity, behaviors …. things that we can do to help conserve them really become apparent.”
He said Bay Cetology has photographed Brave Little Hunter and those images will be used to ID her in the future. The database is available to researchers and watchers in the field.
Brave Little Hunter could be on a remote part of the coast, but if she doesn’t show up this year, “we’re going to have to start considering the possibility that we might have to presume her as deceased,” said Towers, who notes that only a small percentage of west coast killer whales that die ever wash up.
He said because orcas live in such socially cohesive pods, “you can infer an individual is dead if they are not present” with others.
“In this case, because Kwiisahi?is is an orphan, we’d add extra time,” said Towers. “She could be anywhere. She could be lost. She’s not associated with any particular group, so let’s give it a little bit of time.”
He added that potential sightings of the little orca only ceased four months ago. “I think we’re all interested to see what this spring and summer holds once more people are on the water taking photos and sending reports.”
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