Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (March 23, 2015)
7A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • MONDAY, MARCH 23, 2015 VISITING ORCA POD STRUGGLES TO SURVIVE Photo by NOAA Fisheries A Southern Resident killer whale breaches off the Washington coast this February. Whales spend part of the year on outer coast By KATIE WILSON EO Media Group PACIFIC OCEAN — The only killer whales most Long Beach (Wash.) Peninsula res- idents see in person are the chainsaw carvings displayed in a small square on the corner of 3DFL¿F$YHQXHDQG)LIWK6WUHHW where Long Beach’s famous gi- ant skillet also resides. But satellite tracking now shows that orcas make an exten- sive hunting trip along the outer coast every year. Orcas have probably been coming here a long time. Fish- ing boats sometimes report see- ing them in the Columbia River SOXPH WKH QXWULWLRQDOO\ ULFK DUHD ZKHUH WKH ULYHU¶V RXWÀRZ mixes with the ocean. Retired charter boat skipper Ron Malast recalled encountering a pod of orcas in May or June about six years ago as he was returning to ,OZDFR :DVK IURP D KDOLEXW ¿VKLQJWULS 6RPHKDYHHYHQFODLPHGWR see them inside the Columbia HVWXDU\ ,Q WKH V D \RXQJ killer whale journeyed more than 100 miles up the Columbia 5LYHU GHOLJKWLQJ 3RUWODQGHUV for two weeks with its antics before coming to a tragic end at the hands of ex-whalers. This ZLQWHUWKH\KDYHEHHQREVHUYHG foraging in relatively shallow waters near the mouth of Willa- pa Bay. Despite many sightings of the whales over the years and survey cruises by NOAA since WKHHDUO\VWKHVHSDUWLFXODU killer whales — part of an en- dangered population consisting of several pods (or families) FDOOHG WKH 6RXWKHUQ 5HVLGHQW Killer Whales — remain some- thing of a mystery. Researchers still struggle to answer seem- ingly basic questions about their daily habits and longterm needs. And there are very big wor- ries about their continued sur- vival. 7KHVDGVWUDQJHVWRU\RI(WKHOEHUW Orca comes to a tragic end after weird interaction with humans By KATIE WILSON EO Media Group &2/80%,$ 5,9(5 ² 3HRSOH WROG6FRWW:KLWHKHPXVWKDYHVHHQD sea lion or a seal. “You don’t see a white-and-black VHDO DQG WKH\ DLQ¶W IHHW ORQJ´ KH told a reporter with The Daily News in /RQJYLHZ:DVK ,Q0D\:KLWHKDGVWRSSHGIRU construction on Ocean Beach Highway west of Longview and was sitting on the guardrail when he said he saw killer whales surface in the Columbia River. $WWKHWLPH¿VKDQGZLOGOLIHRI¿FHV UHFHLYHGQRUHSRUWRIRUFDVLQWKHULYHU but said such a sighting was possible. It had happened before. Enter Ethelbert. 6KH RU KH ZDV D \RXQJ NLOOHU ZKDOH DERXW IHHW ORQJ WKDW KDG bumbled its way more than 100 miles up the Columbia River and landed out- side of Portland in October 1931. To WKHDPD]HPHQWRIWKHORFDOVZKRDOVR didn’t know what they were seeing at ¿UVW LW SURFHHGHG WR VSODVK DURXQG LQ WKH&ROXPELD6ORXJK (DJHU VSRUWVPHQ JXQV LQ KDQG VRRQ OLQHG WKH VKRUH GHWHUPLQHG WR bag a whale. They shot at it until Gov. Julius L Meier ordered them to stop. Portlanders named the whale Ethelbert and reporters wrote about “the friendly whale” that had come to “visit” the city. %\ 2FW (WKHOEHUW KDG EHHQ LQ the slough for close to 10 days and the Oregon Human society decided the wounded whale needed to be put down. $VKXPDQHO\DVSRVVLEOHWKH\XUJHG the state. Perhaps using dynamite. )LQQ -' -RKQ DQ LQVWUXFWRU DW 2UHJRQ 6WDWH 8QLYHUVLW\ ZULWHV LQ D November 2014 piece for The Pend- leton Record that Jantzen Beach park PDQDJHUV ZLWK WKH VRFLHW\¶V EDFNLQJ also tried to get permission to catch the whale. They hoped to transfer it to a A 1930’s newspaper clipping shows gawkers gathered around Ethelbert, a juvenile orca that somehow managed to become stranded far up the Columbia River. The story ended sadly, with a pair of whalers harpooning the unfortunate creature. saltwater tank at the park and keep it as an attraction.) The directors of the society said the young animal needed sardines and VPDOO ¿VK ,WV WKURDW ZDV WRR VPDOO WR VZDOORZ WKH FDUS EDVV VDOPRQ DQG WURXWDYDLODEOHLQIUHVKZDWHUWKH\DU- gued. They believed it would soon VWDUYH WR GHDWK $OVR WKH EXOOHW KROH wounds were beginning to fester. 1DWXUDOLVWV PHDQZKLOH DFFRUG- ing to an article in the Eugene Regis- WHU*XDUGDUJXHGWKHUHZDVQRUHDVRQ why Ethelbert couldn’t live out the rest of its life in the river. ³7RGD\ DW DQ\ UDWH´ WKH UHSRUWHU FRQFOXGHG³KHDSSHDUHGDVFKLSSHUDV any whale that ever spouted.” The end arrived swiftly. Former whaler Ed Lessard and his son Joseph set out with harpoons. According to VRPH UHSRUWV (G /HVVDUG ZRXOG ODWHU FODLPKHNLOOHG(WKHOEHUWIRUVFLHQWL¿F purposes. “I wanted to get him and look at KLP´ KH VDLG LQ DQ DUWLFOH IRXQG LQ D 8WDK QHZVSDSHU ³, XVHG WR NLOO WKHP but I never saw one just like him.” 6RWZRZHHNVDIWHUDUULYLQJ(WKHOEHUW ent when we began our demo- graphic studies of this popula- tion in 1976.” 6WLOOWKHUHLVDVSRWRIKRSH Hanson and his team spotted a FDOI / RQO\ VHYHUDO GD\V ROG VZLPPLQJ ZLWK / 3RG GL- rectly off the Long Beach Pen- insula Feb. 26 during the survey cruise. Few babies “What does ‘sort of normal’ look like?” asked Dr. Brad +DQVRQ D ZLOGOLIH ELRORJLVW with NOAA’s Northwest Fish- HULHV6FLHQFH&HQWHUDQGFKLHI scientist for the most recent 12$$ NLOOHU ZKDOH FUXLVH LQ a phone interview March 6. His team followed the whales along the Northwest coast for three weeks beginning in Feb- ruary. Researchers look to the Northern Resident Killer Whale pods that live off the coast of %ULWLVK &ROXPELD &DQDGD IRU FOXHV KH VDLG 8QOLNH WKH VRXWKHUQ SRSXODWLRQ WKDW SRS- ulation is clearly growing and there is a good balance of re- productive-age male and female whales. 0HDQZKLOH WKH VRXWKHUQ whale pods “are about where they started at” when NOAA be- gan studying them and “there’s DYHU\VNHZHGVH[FODVV´+DQ- VRQVDLG$OVRZKDOHVELRORJLVWV don’t expect to lose are dying: \RXQJ VHHPLQJO\ KHDOWK\ breeding-age whales. ,Q'HFHPEHUD\RXQJ female orca from the J Pod — RQHRIWKHWKUHHSRGV-.DQG L) that make up the southern res- ident population — was found GHDGQHDU9DQFRXYHU,VODQG6KH was pregnant. Her dead calf was also female. “That was a double wham- P\´+DQVRQVDLG The pregnancy was likely a miscarriage and Hanson said initial investigations indicate the was dead. The harpooned body report- edly sank almost immediately. Before WKH/HVVDUGVFRXOGUHWULHYHWKHFDUFDVV WKRXJKWKH\ZHUHDUUHVWHGFKDUJHGZLWK GLVWXUELQJWKHSXEOLFSHDFHDQGPRUDOV NLOOLQJD¿VKZLWKLOOHJDOWDFNOHDQG¿VK- ing in the slough with illegal tackle. But WKHFKDUJHVGLGQ¶WVWLFN$IWHUDOOQRODZV existed for inland whaling. 0HDQZKLOH RWKHU SHRSOH VQDJJHG the whale carcass. According to Oregon QHZVSDSHUV(WKHOEHUWZHQWRQGLVSOD\ DQGDWVRPHSRLQWWKRXJKLWLVQRWFOHDU ZKHQZDVSLFNOHGLQDWDQNIXOORIHP- EDOPLQJÀXLG But Ed Lessard didn’t give up. The state of Oregon had seized the ZKDOHVRKHIRXJKWWKHVWDWH(YHQWXDO- O\IROORZLQJDQ2UHJRQ6XSUHPH&RXUW UXOLQJWKDWGHFLGHGLQIDYRURIWKHVWDWH the court offered Lessard a deal: If he SDLGEDFNKLVFRXUWFRVWVWKHQIRUDQ H[WUDKHFRXOGKDYH(WKHOEHUWDF- cording to John. (WKHOEHUW¶V¿QDOUHVWLQJSODFHLVXQ- known. -RKQ LQ KLV SLHFH VD\V WKH ZKDOH ZDV UHGLVFRYHUHG LQ 6W +HOHQV DIWHU the tank it was preserved in began to Surveys and sonar Photo by NOAA Fisheries This orca was photographed near the mouth of the Co- lumbia River on Feb. 24 by researchers from the Nation- al Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. North Head Lighthouse and Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center can be seen in the background. .HQ %DOFRPE D VHQLRU UH- search scientist at the Center for :KDOH 5HVHDUFK RQ 6DQ -XDQ ,VODQG :DVK WDNHV LW DQRWKHU step further. L pod is on its way WRH[WLQFWLRQKHZURWHLQDSXE- lic comment against a proposed renewal of a permit that would allow the Navy to test sonar in whale and salmon habitat. In written remarks submitted Feb. 28 in support of expanding the area of critical habitat for VRXWKHUUHVLGHQWRUFDV%DOFRPE L pod woes VDLG³2YHUDOOWKHSRSXODWLRQLV L pod is especially worri- now worse off than it was when VRPH$ORQJZLWK.SRG/SRG LW ZDV ¿UVW GHVLJQDWHG (QGDQ- is the group that so far appears to JHUHG LQ 1RYHPEHU LQ spend the most time on the out- spite of $15.6 million spent on er coast. According to NOAA UHFRYHU\ HIIRUWV / SRG UHDG VWXGLHV DW WKH HQG RI / PRVW FRDVWDO LQ WKLV KDELWDW LV pod had few young whales and well on its way to extinction many mature whales reaching with only two viable matrilines the end of their breeding years. remaining of ten that were pres- mother may have died from a related infection. “You look back 40 years and we had fewer reproductive-age females than we do now and the population managed to grow IURP WR ´ +DQVRQ VDLG 1RZWKHUHDUHZKDOHVEXWRI those 30 are female and few are producing calves. It is possible WKH\DUHKDYLQJFDOYHVEXWWKRVH calves are dying before biolo- gists ever lay eyes on them. The Navy is seeking to reau- WKRUL]H¿YH\HDUWHVWLQJSHUPLWV to continue testing and training in the Olympic National Marine 6DQFWXDU\ 12$$ ZLOO QHHG WR sign off on these applications since the testing will likely result LQ³LQFLGHQWDOWDNH´RUWKH³XQ- intentional harm or harassment of an endangered species as long DVLWDIIHFWVDVPDOOSRUWLRQKDV QRPRUHWKDQDQHJOLJLEOHHIIHFW and does not have an unmitiga- EOHHIIHFW´DFFRUGLQJWR12$$ spokesperson Michael Milstein. But advocates and environ- mental groups say the Navy’s plans could decimate marine PDPPDODQG¿VKSRSXODWLRQV At a press conference March /\QQH %DUUH 12$$¶V ZHVW FRDVWEUDQFKFKLHIVDLGWKHDJHQ- cy is in the process of reviewing LQIRUPDWLRQDERXWWKH6RXWKHUQ Resident Killer Whales’ use of coastal habitat and considering a petition to expand critical habi- tat areas — including potentially 700 miles of coastline and areas where the Navy is hoping to test. This would give the whales an extra layer of protection. Much of the data gathered on this year’s whale survey OHDNFDXVLQJDWHUULEOHVWHQFKLQWRZQ in August 1949. He says the whale was buried a week later. But a 1971 Associated Press arti- cle reported that Ed Lessard carted the ZKDOHDURXQGIRUVL[WRVHYHQ\HDUVD regular traveling show. When he retired WKHVKRZKHWRRNWKHZKDOHVWLOOLQLWV ER[WRSURSHUW\KHRZQHGRQDPRXQ- tain near Washougal. The reporter claimed the whale ZDVVWLOOWKHUHDQRSHQVHFUHWNHSWE\ the property’s various owners and lat- er made public by a Clark County land DSSUDLVHU6WLOOWKHUHZDVQRUXVKWRWXUQ the site into a tourist attraction. ³7KHZKDOHKDVODLQWKHUHVLQFHORV- ing his formaldehyde smell to the ele- ments but resisting decomposition and HURVLRQ´WKHUHSRUWHUZURWH³7KHPHWDO ER[KDVUXVWHG¿UWUHHVKDYHVSURXWHG DURXQG LW DQG WKH URDG OHDGLQJ WR WKH spot has been lost to brush; the whale VWLOO OLHV WKHUH PRXWK RSHQ DQG H\HV staring.” Ethelbert “will fade back into ru- PRUV DQG WDOHV DJDLQ´ WKH UHSRUWHU FRQFOXGHG³ZKLFKRIFRXUVHQRRQHLV really going to believe.” FUXLVHZLOOLQIRUPWKDWSURFHVV WLELOLW\ WR GLVHDVH DPRQJ RWKHU things. she said. Balcomb told ocean conserva- Lack of data tion group BlueVoice that he saw The 2013 and 2015 cruises “pretty serious mortality” begin- DUHWKHPRVWSURGXFWLYHWRGDWH ning in the mid-90s. He looked at Hanson said. But while they video footage from the 1980s and gathered a wealth of informa- VDQGVDLG³-XVWLQDSHULRGRI tion on the whales’ winter habits less than 20 years we’ve lost most and enjoyed many successful of the adult males in the whole GD\VRIREVHUYDWLRQERWK\HDUV southern resident community” — it’s not enough to see patterns something he attributed to high PCB levels in the whales’ tissues. emerge. “Their immune systems are )RU H[DPSOH KH DQG RWKHUV believe the southern popula- GHSUHVVHGPXFKOLNH$,'6´KH tion’s low birthrate could be due told BlueVoice co-founder Har- to contaminants in the water dy Jones. %XW +DQVRQ VDLG WUDQVLHQW such as PCBs. They know the whales are experiencing higher killer whales — ones that range levels of contamination in their DURXQGWKH1RUWK3DFL¿F2FHDQ bodies than before. Part of the DQG JR DIWHU PDULQH PDPPDOV problem is they don’t have any- unlike the southern and northern thing to compare the current lev- UHVLGHQWVZKLFKHDW¿VK²DUH els to. They don’t know exactly loaded with contaminants. “They make the southern what the contaminant levels UHVLGHQWV ORRN FOHDQ´ KH VDLG looked like in prior decades. The whales shed these con- “And that population is growing taminants at a relatively low quite well.” “I ask that question all the UDWH+DQVRQVD\VDQGDIHPDOH will transfer much of them to WLPH([SODLQZK\WKLVKDSSHQV´ her calf. High contaminant lev- he added. “…There’s no pattern els could mean a higher suscep- to it. That’s the problem.” M a rch 24 th 1p m o r 6 p m CONCEAL CARRY PERMIT CLASS Oregon – Utah - Valid 34 States Best W estern : 5 5 5 Ha m b urg Ave, Asto ria O OR/Utah–valid R/U ta h— va lid in in WA W A $80 $80 or o r Oregon O reg o n only o n ly $4 5 $45 | Firea rm Tra in in gN W @ gm a il.com w w shauncurtain.com w .Firea rm Tra in in gN W .com ~ shauncurtain@gmail.com 36 0-921-2071 360-921-2071