NOAA proposal would expand habitat for Southern Resident killer whales
U.S. protections for the waters that a group of endangered orcas call home could soon expand beyond the Seattle area to encompass much of the West Coast, from the Canadian border to central California. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued a proposal Wednesday to increase the critical habitat designation for southern resident killer whales by more than sevenfold under the Endangered Species Act. Just 73 orcas remain in the Pacific Northwest population, the lowest number in more than three decades. They're struggling with a lack of chinook salmon, their preferred prey, as well as toxic contamination and vessel noise.
Section:Gallery
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In this Jan. 18, 2014, photo, an endangered female orca leaps from the water while breaching in Puget Sound west of Seattle, Wash. Habitat protections for an endangered population of orcas would be greatly expanded under a proposal to be advanced by NOAA Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2019.
Elaine Thompson Associated Press
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This September 2015 photo shows an aerial view of adult female Southern Resident killer whale (J16) swimming with her calf (J50).
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In this July 31, 2015 photo, an orca leaps out of the water near a whale watching boat in the Salish Sea in the San Juan Islands, Wash. Habitat protections for an endangered population of orcas would be greatly expanded under a proposal to be advanced by NOAA Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2019.
Elaine Thompson Associated Press
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In this Jan. 18, 2014, photo, a female resident orca whale breaches while swimming in Puget Sound near Bainbridge Island, Wash., as seen from a federally permitted research vessel. Habitat protections for an endangered population of orcas would be greatly expanded under a proposal to be advanced by NOAA.
Elaine Thompson Associated Press