Just in time to resurrect this group again (pardon the Easter-time pun), two bombshells are dropped by Seaworld. One that they will end the breeding and the other that they are ending the shows.

Ending Breeding
http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-.....-killer-whales

Ending Shows
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money.....ales/81900498/

The breeding, I'm rather skeptical on. Mostly because they will likely end the AIs, but let orcas be orcas and breed anyway. So "accidental" births will still happen. However, it wouldn't be a constant flow of calves, so it might take a couple decades, but the last orca in captivity WILL die eventually. If they don't agree to finally empty the tanks first, which will take a couple decades anyway.

The shows, I'm more optimistic on. With their focus now on making the encounters more "natural", they can finally work on adding some scenery to the tanks so the orcas are less bored with those stupid white walls. Also, the orca tredmill idea they had before should DEFINITELY be mandatory. Court-mandated, even.

I KNOW it's not the ocean or the sea-pen, but I can certainly give Seaworld a pat on the back for finally realizing the bullshit is over. No big company wants to go down in flames the way it was about to and these two things are MAJOR concessions for them. Hell, I'd even say it's better this way for the little ones. The ones born in captivity have NO IDEA what's in the ocean, so being introduced to a more natural setting would be a great help in case they ever do make it out to the sea-pen.

~Tag

Not So much a moment as an update since this journal is rather late, so I thought I'd share the news that most likely you've already heard already.

This month, floodwaters polluted the Marineland, Antibes enclosure, causing the death of 19 year old bull, Valentin. The floodwaters in his pool were most likely filled with toxic debris from streets and trash around the park. He joins his mother, Freya, who died in June at age 33 of unknown causes. This event has, understandably, caused many orca fans to look more closely at the quality, safety, and livelihood of captive orcas. Afterall, Freya should have lived at least 10 years longer while poison floodwater would not be a problem in the wild.

I'm not trying to start a debate, per-say, but I also don't want to completely ignore what happens to captive orcas compared to wild. I'll put it to the members. Should the group remain neutral in this standing? Or should we take one side over the other and become more of an activist group? I look forward to reading your responses.

~Taggr

http://globalnews.ca/news/2202864/o.....-record-books/

As we're starting to near the end of the year, here's a quick recap on the American Resident births for this year. In total- FOUR brand new calves have been born to the most endangered orca population in the world! Let's cross our fingers for more before the year is over! :>
~Taggr

This month's orca moment comes from earlier this year. In January, a pod of very rare Type D orca spent about an hour alongside Bob Barker's ship in the South Indian Ocean. This is very exciting, as we now have live footage of Type D! Just look at those teeny tiny eye patches! And those SHARP dorsal fins! EEEEEE!!! ^^

http://news.discovery.com/animals/w.....age-150107.htm

Hello, Everyone!
This journal is dedicated to helping  syrios and  calafin create an Aquatics Calendar for next year and the remaining months of this year. For minors and the squeamish, the calendar is rated R, but if you are unhindered by age and religious/moral limits, please have a look!

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/17002225/

~ darktaggr

 darktaggr
I figure we should at least update the journals monthly with special moments that are caught on camera. This surfer had a close encounter with one of our brothers. Lucky guy. *V*

http://www.3news.co.nz/nznews/paddl.....#axzz3aYgt5O3h

Orcas, that is.  darktaggr here again. So, a while ago, around when Blackfish first came out, I heard about a few instances of orcas leaping out of SeaWorld pools. I hadn't been able to confirm the stories, but I do recall that one name was given quite frequently. I remember it was a bull, but I can't remember what stadium. From the way it was told, though, it sounded as if he'd cleared the glass completely and landed squarely on the seats. I took the stories and placed them on the plausible shelf and didn't think much more of them. Since I know orcas are smarter than that, but also know that depression can lead people to do dangerous things, I wasn't sure if I should believe the tales, and without proof, I could only stick a pin in them.

Flash forward to today when the IFuckingLoveScience Facebook page decided to post about one curious cow.

http://www.iflscience.com/plants-an.....ident-seaworld

All it would have taken was one gentle, friendly nibble on a kid's finger and a once-in-a-life-time touch on the beak would have turned into the million dollar lawsuit moment.

http://www.komonews.com/news/local/.....279933522.html

Newborn, L-120, is suspected to have been lost in a recent storm. S/He was just born in early September this year and was the first calf since 2012 to be born in the L pod. L-119 (Joy) is still the youngest member of the pod, which consists of 35 members. Members within her age range are L-118 (Jade), L-117 (Keta), L-116 (Finn), L-115 (Mystic), and L-113 (Cousteau).

http://www.orcaspirit.com/vancouver.....ife-of-an-orca

The feels... T.T
I can't.

~ darktaggr

Hey-lo everyone!  darktaggr here again! I return tentatively with some personal fursona ideas that include everyone's favorite swimming mammal- NO, not THAT one! *tail lobs an otter*

BUT, enough about me. I just discovered this little article and found it rather interesting. While I don't pretend to enjoy the idea of captive sentient beings *cough*, I can't come up with another way anyone would have found this out, as some pods tend to hunt their tiny gray cousins. Heck, I've seen footage of a dolphin preferring the company of giant sperm whales.

http://news.sciencemag.org/plants-a.....-speak-dolphin

Enjoy!

~Taggr

Greetings Pod!

First off I'd like to apologize for the lack of activity here on the group page. There hasn't been a lot of news regarding orcas I come across so I can't provide any news for you guys about our wild and captive pods. If I spot something anything related to orcas, this place will be the first place to get the news.

If you want to contribute to any news or Orca related themes, send me a note. Just be sure your sources are reputable and safe links when sending them to the group notes.

I've also started setting the group mature rating to SFW, as this is going to be an all ages group.

Thank you all for your patience!

Until next time, podmaster signing off.

Hey podmembers!

Got a small news update for you all if you care to read. This time it involves a possible pregnancy of wild Southern Resident by the name of Rhapsody from J Pod.

You can read the article here: http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/natu.....ght-baby-bump/

Lets all hope she is carrying a calf and help bring a boost to a shrinking population.


Until next time, podmaster signing off.

Hey pod members!

I came across some news for today in the orca world! First off we got a nice little video of a kayaker paddling off of Hornby Island, B.C., Canada and has come across a pod of orcas in what appears to be a bait ball of fish (possibly herring or sardines) and gets a surprise!

Video/Article here: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sidesho.....9780.html?vp=1


And in deeper news, today is the Dutch court decision over the case of Morgan, a female Norwegian orca found back in 2010 off the coast of the Netherlands who was brought back to health only to be deemed "non-releasable" and sent to Loro Parque in the Canary Islands with a pod of orcas that have a history of negative behavior on each other and to trainers.

News Article here: https://www.thedodo.com/community/T.....ml?xrs=Dodo_FB

Let's cross flippers that the Dutch judges finally see the miserable state Morgan is in and allow the safe return to her native waters!


Until next time, podmaster signing off.

Hello everyone!

I'm , your new group owner after Taggr allowed me to take over after their departure.

So here's a few things about me:

~I'm a fursuit maker, with most of my designs trying to go for the realism to semi-realism spectrum. So most of my submissions on my page will be commissions or personal tails, etc. There will also be the occasional photographs of Orcas, as well as dolphins and belugas from various Aquaria I've visited in the past (as soon as I get my last tail in gear and post up more)

~Orcas have been a part of my life as far back as I can remember, having started with two stuffed orcas (which I still have to this day) from infancy to watching Free Willy on the bigscreen, my connection with them grew to where I have recognized the orca as my totem and guide.


Anyways, I hope I can help continue giving this place life and provide as much Orca news I can.

Thanks to anyone for welcoming me in as new owner of Orca_Clan!


~Valiax

You can find out why I'm leaving FA by going to my userpage and reading my current journal. Suffice to say I won't continue being your admin here on Orca_Clan.

I'll leave you in the capable flippers of  valiax

~Taggr

 darktaggr

Anyone who's had admin experience in the past will do. I simply don't have the time to manage three clubs and one is taking up more of my time than the other two. Message me on this account or my main if you're interested.

Please read this Journal from  hockeyorca

http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/5252262/

You'll notice under the user profile of this group that three more links have been added. These have been provided by and are hosts of live video and audio feeds of wild orca. I've heard of at least one of these links before in a documentary not too long ago. One of the problems researchers face is that, although we can both hear and see what's going on, we rarely know which orca is making what sound. This is a major downfall of the "hands off" conviction, as taken by many "hardcore" researchers. I, personally, believe a tiny sensor somewhere on an orca's melon might serve to identify what sound a particular orca is making via the vibrations it can pick up. Make it black so to minimize the distraction to other orca, and there's the easiest way to go. But noooooo hands-off! Hands off! Hands OFF! Oi... A happy medium is all I ask. -.-;

ANYWAY! Orcas! Orca sounds! Check them out! :>

Around 2001-2002, A73 had been found separated from her pod in Puget Sound. She was only a small calf then. Reintroducing her to her pod was a chore in and of itself, but, amazingly, it worked. Years later, we now see that the rescue was a true success. The Orca population relies heavily on breeding individuals to keep their numbers up. It also shows that her time alongside humans wasn't detrimental to her upbringing. Actually, being only 13 years old, I believe she's now the youngest of her kind to give birth, depending on how old her calf is. J37 "Hy’Shqa" may still keep that title.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/.....imals-science/

I found this documentary on YouTube and had to share. Be warned- it stars Keiko. So grab your blankies, bibs, and bottles, because you're going to cry like a baby. T.T

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7OVin11W4Y

25 July, 2013

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art.....our-chase.html

Off the Mexican coast, a pod of orca were seen chasing a dolphin for two hours before this female leaped 15ft into the air in a final effort to catch their prey. These photos catch the jump.

HO-LEE -WOW!! 8O

I was just surfing one day and came across this fun little YouTube video. `V`

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSLC4RunApw

I haven't got a clue as to who this could possibly be. From the upload date, I think we can safely assume that it wasn't L98 (Luna), or it would have been uploaded a lot sooner.

Anyone else have any fun orca videos?

Edit: After watching "The Whale", I have discovered that this is indeed L98 (Luna).

I feel it's best to get this out of the way. Although I don't think any sensible cetacean furry would claim that further capture is acceptable, there is still the debate on wether or not the current captives of Sea World would be better off released. Here's a list of what we can agree on.

1. Further Capture is WRONG.
Flat out. End of story. Although there might be cases in which capture is the only or last means of survival (stranding, lost, or misplaced), actively snaring orcas for the sake of entertainment, display, or consumption is frowned upon by most, if not, ALL orca lovers.
2. Animal Circuses are NOT Educational Arenas.
Let's face it, most of us probably wanted to be orca trainers after seeing Free Willy. However, just because these animals are in water and are not being physically abused does not mean they are not circuses. The ability of an animal to do a trick on command is not a testament to its intelligence, but its obedience.

There are two points in which we all disagree- where active debate is still going on.

1. Captive orcas should be RELEASED.
Although the release of Keiko was not a total failure, it still stands to reason that any orcas who are released today may meet the same fate. I, personally, am on the fence about this statement. If released all together, I believe the orcas might actually stand a chance living in the wild, at least for a while. They are, after all, one of the brightest creatures on the planet. Obviously, there would be problems with too much human contact and dependance, but eventually they would get the idea... hopefully. But until the release of one orca is fully successful, I'll keep my skepticism about this idea.
2. Captive breeding should be BANNED.
I've stated before that I agree with this statement, however, in light of the information about the lack of data concerning the number of wild populations, I might have to disagree. Although the gene pool for captives is absolutely laughable, if it does end up that this species is, in fact, endangered, then perhaps this is an avenue that we should keep open.


Please keep in mind that these stances have absolutely nothing to do with fictional characters. Wether your fursona or a character you've created is wild or not- it makes no difference as long as it's at least part orca. `V`

The rules are mainly in regard to any captive vs. wild debate that may go on here in the journals. However, they're a good reference to go by at all times.

1. Be Respectful.
Wether the person you're talking to deserves respect or not, you come off as the more sensible one if this is the only rule you abide by in any debate. So please, if you're arguing and feel that you may soon lose your cool, talk to an admin.
2. No Raking Others.
Orca talk for NO BULLYING and NO NAME-CALLING. Check your attitudes at the shore. Also, before you complain that you are being raked, take a deep breath and make sure the statement is directly aimed at you. Sometimes we can be a little harsh while others can be a little sensitive. Make sure offense was intended before you take it.
3. Do Your Research.
If you're about to put forth a claim that you're not 100% sure on, look it up. Cite your sources. If you are proven wrong, there is no shame in admitting it. Take defeat with dignity. If you're proven right, don't let it inflate your ego too much.

Hello there! Welcome to the Orca Clan! I am your admin and group owner, DarkTaggr. You may call me Tag or Tags if you prefer. I've been in the fandom since 2007, although I've been an anthro and animal fan for most, if not all, of my life. I've been a fursona hopper for a long time, but by making this group, I hope to anchor myself to this current fursona. This is not the only reason I've made this group, however. I've recently rediscovered a strong connection to the orca, as it was a main feature in many of my dreams as a child. I suppose my desire to find the perfect fursona made me blind to the fact that it might have already made itself known to me.

Now it's your turn! Introduce yourself and tell us what drew you to the orca fursona!