#srkws

They are making TOOLS! The tools described are made of kelp and are basically used like… a communal hairbrush, sorta? For social grooming.

I am the one thing in life I can control I am inimitable I am an original I'm not falling behind or running late I'm not standing still

I am lying in wait

Life doesn't discriminate Between the sinners and the saints

It takes and it takes and it takes.

& we keep living anyway We Rise & we Fall & we Break & We make our mistakes.

& if there's a reason I'm still alive When so many have died--

Princess Angeline (J17) 1977-2019

New calf got me feeling sentimental so we’re gonna talk about J46 Star

Now, mind you, one should not have favorites when dealing with an endangered population of animals. You’re likely to get your heart broken (though to be fair, heartbreak is Why J46 is my favorite). But in 2015 I watched with elation as J46’s mother, J28 Polaris, showed up with a new baby son, J54 Dipper. Then, not long after, I watched with dread and despair as Polaris and Dipper both grew thinner and thinner, developing “peanut head”, which is a sign of sever starvation in orcas.

Now, here’s what softened my heart so much for Star: Polaris disappeared, sunk dead into the Salish sea with her ancestors for lack of crucial salmon. Since 10 month old Dipper was still nursing he was completely doomed. But! Poor Star. Sweet, brave Star… she tried so so so hard to save her baby brother. She hunted salmon and tried to feed him, when there was hardly enough fish then to feed herself. When he was too weak to carry himself up for breath she carried him dutifully to the surface so he wouldn’t drown. Keep in mind, at this time Star herself was only about 6 years old. Orcas age much like humans and live similar lifespans, and she was still very much a child.

Star could not save Dipper, of course. There really was no chance for the poor baby. But she tried, and she did survive. And she has continued to survive! Which is nothing to sniff at with her mother having passed when she was so young. Orcas stay with their mother’s for their entire lives, and with both her mother and now her grandmother both deceased it is amazing that she has continued to thrive.

The celebration of life for Tokitae and the installation ceremony for this story pole on San Juan island was really lovely today. It’s always good to hear the Lummi people speak and share their amazing leadership and wisdom, and to hear for sure that Sk’aliCh’elh’tenaut’s body will be coming home.

Going to really try to follow the wisdom the Lummi elders shared today about moving beyond our grief of this loss to focus our energy on protecting and preserving the rest of Toki’s family, who still need our help. The dead baby orcas draped over the story pole’s nose represents the baby that the J-pod orca, Tahlequah, carried on a tour of grief for 17 days. Her message was clear then as it is now: we need help. Our babies are starving, and we are dying. Help us, please, help us.

Remember that no extinction happens in a vacuum. We need to protect the salmon, and the water, and the orcas. They share a future with our next 7 generations. What world will we leave for them?

Nyssa (L84) 1990-2019 💔