1/20/2024 0 Comments Whales in puget soundCommunityĬommunity is the top level of killer whale social structure. All Southern Resident Killer Whales belong to J-Clan. Pods with very similar dialects are more closely related than those with different features in their dialects. ClanĪ clan is a group of pods that share similar calls or dialects. Southern Resident Killer Whales are comprised of three pods: J-Pod, K-Pod and L-Pod. As pods grow in size over time, they may split into new pods. PodĪ pod is a group of related matrilines that travel, forage, socialize, and rest together. In 2010, Southern Resident Killer Whales were organized along 19 matrilines, and more recent estimates report that up to 25 matrilines may now exist. Sons and daughters stay with their mother throughout their lives, even after they have offspring of their own. A matriarch (older female) and all of her descendants (including sons, daughter, and grandchildren) are referred to as a matriline. Matriline is the smallest killer whale social unit. Photo credit: NOAA Fisheries, Vancouver Aquarium. MatrilineĪn aerial view of the entire I16 matriline of Northern Resident Killer Whales taken in 2014. ![]() How much each unit is related to another gets progressively weaker from the smallest social unit (matriline) through the largest (community). ![]() Killer whale societies are organized into a series of social units according to maternal genealogy. Southern Resident Killer Whale critical habitat in Canadian waters was expanded in 2018, and in the United States, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is proposing to expand Southern Resident Killer Whale habitat beyond the Salish Sea. ![]() Such habitat provides for sustained feeding and foraging, resting, socialization, reproduction, rearing, and migration.Ĭoastal watersheds that are not currently designated as critical habitat are also important for Southern Resident Killer Whales and their prey. Click on image for larger view.Ĭritical habitat is especially important to maintain as it provides the features, functions and attributes required to support the species’ survival or recovery. Canadian and transboundary waters in British Columbia are protected under the Species at Risk Act. Washington transboundary waters are protected under the Endangered Species Act. Identified critical habitat for the Southern Resident Killer Whales.
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