A Whale Of A Tale

[dales]

The oldest-known living orca whale is still alive and swimming, and was spotted just off the coast of Washington last week.

The 105-year-old whale nicknamed "Granny" was seen on July 27 swimming with a few other whales, and seemed to be in "high spirits," according to a whale-sighting report shared by Orca Network.

While it seems impossible that a whale can live up to 105, Granny — also known by her scientific name J2 — has been studied by scientists since the early 1970s. Her age was first deduced by scientists who first spotted her in 1971, and it was generally accepted that year that Granny was 40, Michael Harris, executive director of Pacific Whale Watch Association, told SeattlePI in 2014. It has since been stated that there is a 12-year margin of error around her age, possibly making her as young as 90, according to Orca Network.


Granny has continued to be sighted throughout the years, despite an average life expectancy of between 60 and 80 years for wild orcas. Granny, and other older whales in the wild, far outlive whales in captivity who have only been known to live up to (at most) their early 40s, Harris pointed out.[another reason to scuttle those stupid and cruel so-called "wild animal parks"]

Granny is known by the markings near her dorsal fin. As the Tribune pointed out, Granny was named the honorary mayor of the city of Eastound, located in Washington, in June. Her "mayoral address" can be found here.

[Long Run]

When asked, she said the secret to her longevity was lots of exercise and plenty of socializing. She added that she never smoked or drank, but she has been known to spout off at times and, among other breeches of etiquette, she sees her pod mates as black and white and stays away from gray areas.

[Lord Jim]

The oldest-known living orca whale is still alive

[Meade mode] Yes, well that would seem to logically follow...[/Meade mode]

[Big RR]

But it is still trying to live down its role in the horrible Richard Harris movie.

[RayThom]

But it is still trying to live down its role in the horrible Richard Harris movie.

"ORCA" -- A movie so bad that all product placement was rescinded and they even renamed the pickup truck to read "FORGE."

Regardless, Richard Harris was great... even more so after he sobered up from his lifelong stupor.

A Must Read: "Hellraisers: The Life and Inebriated Times of Richard Burton, Richard Harris, Peter O'Toole, and Oliver Reed."

[Bicycle Bill]

The oldest-known living orca whale is still alive and swimming, and was spotted just off the coast of Washington last week.

The 105-year-old whale nicknamed "Granny" was seen on July 27 swimming with a few other whales, and seemed to be in "high spirits," according to a whale-sighting report shared by Orca Network.
....
Granny has continued to be sighted throughout the years, despite an average life expectancy of between 60 and 80 years for wild orcas. Granny, and other older whales in the wild, far outlive whales in captivity who have only been known to live up to (at most) their early 40s, Harris pointed out.[another reason to scuttle those stupid and cruel so-called "wild animal parks"]

So what?  There are countless other animals who have made it past their 'normal' life expectancy; some with, some without the assistance of humans.  And for every whale in the wild like "Granny" who has managed to beat the odds, how many other 'wild' orcas, porpoises, dolphins, and so on are there who never even made it to maturity and breeding age?

Not to mention that those "wild animal parks" that you exhibit such scorn for have been and continue to be key players in making sure that other species, such as the whooping crane, the grey wolf, the American bison, and big cats like the endangered Bengal and Sumatran tiger are not lost to extinction as has already happened to the dodo and the passenger pigeon.

-"BB"-

[Guinevere]

[dales]

Bicycle Billy:

So you approve of a large sea creature being confined to a small tank for public exhibition?

[Bicycle Bill]

Bicycle Billy:

So you approve of a large sea creature being confined to a small tank for public exhibition?

Not 100%, but when it has been shown that if left in the wild they will not survive (care to tell me what happened to all the right whales?) one is sometimes left with no better alternative.

-"BB"-

[dales]

From wiki:

Today, the North Atlantic and North Pacific right whales are among the most endangered whales in the world,[15] and both species are protected in the United States by the Endangered Species Act. The western populations of both are currently endangered, with their total populations numbering in the hundreds. The eastern North Pacific population, on the other hand, with fewer than 50 individuals remaining, is critically endangered[16] – further still, the eastern North Atlantic population, which numbers in the low teens at best, may already be functionally extinct.[15] Although no longer facing a threat from whaling, mankind remains by far the greatest threat to these species: the two leading causes of death are from being struck by ships and from entanglement in fishing gear. Regarding the North Atlantic right whale, for example, these two anthropogenic factors alone account for 48% of all known right whale deaths since 1970.[17]

Perhaps we should place them in tanks?

[rubato]

I've seen blue whales, gray whales, humpback whales &c in Monterey bay and the adjacent ocean from sailboats and whale watching boats (just fishing party boats).


Beautiful


yrs,
rubato

[Gob]

You love seeing them killed to, right rubato?

Animal rights groups are merely western Taliban.

Pilot whales and Minke whales are of no different moral status than any other food animal. You are just not thinking.

Since no one has ever shown any rational reason to regard whales as having a different moral status from any other food animal the belief that they do is thus religious in nature and no one has the right to enforce their religious beliefs on anyone else. Whale killing is regulated and just as humane as beef slaughter.