Killer whales are making a comeback!
Globally, the population of killer whales (also known as orcas) has been decreasing in recent years, but that unfortunate statistic appears to be changing.
Over the last year four killer whale calves were spotted off the coast of Canada alone, CBC News reported.
The most recent killer whale spotting was reportedly on June 1 near Cox Beach south of Tofino on the west coast of Vancouver Island.
The calf, known as L-121, was born to a whale known as L-Pod. This particular birth was celebrated by researchers because in recent years, L-Pod lost one calf and a three-year-old female, CBC News reported.
"I'm one of those who think that the southerns have finally turned the corner," Michael Harris, the executive director of the PWWA, which represents 32 operators in Washington and British Columbia, said in a statement. "We've got a real chance of bringing these whales back. And hey, maybe - if that baby whale can make it, this population can."
In 2008 A final recovery plan for the Southern Resident killer whales was released that outlines what experts among others could do to help conserve the population.
Hopefully, like Harris speculated, these killer whale calf sightings are a sign that the population will make it.
