Orcas News

Los Angeles - In another blow for SeaWorld, a state lawmaker introduced new legislation that would ban the use of killer whales during performances in California.

The documentary Blackfish certainly made it the year of the orca, but there were several other notable achievements for cetaceans in 2013. These are the accomplishments voted on by advocates themselves.

Antibes - Marineland France celebrated the birth of a new orca on Nov. 20, or did they? While a 12-year-old female orca named Wikie definitely delivered a calf, there has been no big announcement of the birth.

A killer whale called Springer is the first to have been captured and released and subsequently given birth in the wild. She was spotted with a calf on July 4 by biologist Graeme Ellis near Bella Bella on B.C.'s northern coast.

With both David Kirby's book -- Death At SeaWorld debuting in paperback, and the documentary 'Blackfish' opening across US and UK theatres, July is looking to become Tilikum's month.

Sydney - Another day, another monster? Not quite, this time. A large aquatic animal, apparently carnivorous, has washed up in New Zealand. The body is badly decomposed, and suggests a crocodilian head with a twin fin tail.

A recent photo expedition off Sri Lanka produced more than just photos of blue whales. Instead, there was a sighting of killer whales assaulting sperm whales.

Quebec - Residents of the small Canadian town of Inukjuak, Quebec are responding to the plight of eleven killer whales trapped under the ice in Hudson Bay.

It's been 15 years since the documentary was first released in November 1997, but it is still considered one of the most telling exposures of the captive marine mammal industry.

Seattle - Killer whales, also known as Orca whales, are not doing very well in Puget Sound. In fact, in 2005 they were added to the endangered species list. There's hope however in the form of a black lab mix who's helping researchers try and save the whales.