J35 "Tahlequah" (pronounced tah-le-KWAH) is a 25-year-old female Southern resident killer whale. She is the matriarch of the J17 matriline.[1] Tahlequah made international headlines in 2018 when she carried the body of her deceased daughter for 17 days.
Life History[]
Tahlequah was born in 1998 to J17 "Princess Angeline". She was Princess Angeline's second calf. Her older sister, J28 "Polaris", had been born 5 years prior in late 1992/early 1993. It was later determined Tahlequah's father was L41 "Mega".
In February of 2009, Tahlequah's little brother, J44 "Moby," was born. Only a few months later in November, Polaris had her first daughter, J46 "Star." It wouldn't be long before Tahlequah herself had her first calf, J47 "Notch" in January 2010. The three young calves grew up together, and share a very close bond. In 2013, Polaris gave birth again, but the female calf was a stillborn. In October of 2015, Tahlequah's little sister, J53 "Kiki," was born. Only two months later. in December 2015, Polaris gave birth to her first son, J54 "Dipper."
In January of 2016, Polaris began to lose weight, likely from birth complications. Her health continued to decline, and by July she was severely emaciated and developed "peanut head". Polaris' son Dipper, who was still nursing, developed the same condition as he wasn't getting proper nutrition from his ailing mother. Polaris' 6-year-old daughter Star attempted to care for the pair, catching and offering salmon to them. Despite her best efforts, Porlaris passed away between October 16th and 18th, 2016. Star and Tahlequah attempted to care for Dipper, but his health continued to deteriorate. He was seen with severe rake marks around his dorsal fin shortly before his death, which were believed to have come from Star and Tahlequah using their teeth to keep Dipper at the surface to breathe. Dipper was last seen about a week after his mother died. [2]
Princess Angeline, Tahlequah's mother, began to show signs of "peanut head" in November 2018. Her condition worsened by December. While she did appear to get better in the months that followed, she passed away in the summer of 2019.
First Calves[]
Tahlequah had her first calf, a male, named J47 "Notch" in January of 2010. He received an distinctive nick in his dorsal fin during his infancy which is how he got his name. Genetic testing revealed Notch's father to be L57 "Faith".
First Tour of Grief[]
J35 and the body of her dead calf. Photo provided by the Center for Whale Research.
On July 23rd, 2018, Tahlequah gave birth to a female calf. The calf did not live long, however, and died within a half hour after birth.[3] Tahlequah drew international attention as she carried the body of her dead calf for following 17 days over 1,000 miles. By day six, she was showing signs of weakness and was falling behind her pod. After a week, other members of J pod began to take turns carrying the body while Tahlequah rested.[4] By day nine, the calf showed signs of decomposition.[5] Tahlequah and the rest of her pod were not seen for several days, but on August 8 she was spotted again, still carrying her baby.[6] On day seventeen, she finally let go of the calf and rejoined her pod.[7] The calf was posthumously named "Ti-Tahlequah," meaning "little Tahlequah."
Another Chance[]
In July 2020, Tahlequah was announced to be pregnant again.[8] In early September of 2020 (likely September 4th), Tahlequah gave birth to her third calf, a son named J57 "Phoenix."
Second Tour of Grief[]
4 years after the birth of her son Phoenix, Tahlequah gave birth to another calf who was first seen on December 20, 2024. The calf was determined to be a female on December 23 and was given the designation J61. Researchers believed J61 was born prematurely and expressed concerns about the health of the newborn, as J61 was observed being pushed around on Tahlequah's rostrum and not looking lively.[9] NOAA Researchers observed Tahlequah and the rest of J pod on December 31st. They did not see J61, leading them to believe she passed away. [10] A day later on January 1st, 2025, Tahlequah was once again seen pushing her deceased daughter, just as she did in 2018. [11] Tahlequah and her family weren't seen for over a week. On the morning of January 10th, she was seen in Haro Strait off San Juan Island still carrying her daughter's body.[12]
Galleries[]
- Photos of J35 Tahlequah
- Videos of J35 Tahlequah
References[]
- ↑ Meet the whales
- ↑ CWR - J28
- ↑ Newborn orca from endangered B.C. pod dies shortly after birth
- ↑ Orcas now taking turns floating dead calf in apparent mourning ritual
- ↑ Researchers found orca whale still holding on to her dead calf 9 days later
- ↑ 'I am sobbing': Mother orca still carrying her dead calf - 16 days later
- ↑ 'Tour of grief is over' for killer whale no longer carrying dead calf
- ↑ Killer whale who grieved for 17 days carrying her dead calf is pregnant again
- ↑ Orca Conservancy: We have learned of some new updates on the newest calf born into J Pod!
- ↑ Endangered orcas’ circle of life: one baby dies, another is born
- ↑ Mother orca tahlequah once again carrying her dead calf
- ↑ Mother orca Tahlequah still carries dead calf after 11 days
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