A new killer whale calf has been born in J Pod, one of the three pods that frequent the Salish Sea, which includes Puget Sound.

The new baby has been given the designation J-46, the next available number in sequence, said Susan Berta of Orca Network. The calf has been seen swimming close to J-28, a 16-year-old orca named Polaris who is presumed to be the mom.

This birth brings the population of J Pod to 27 and the total for all three pods to 87. The Southern Resident population was declared an “endangered” species in 2005, after the population had dropped to a recent low of 79 animals in 2001.

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