Update on Rescued Baby Whale

Please Rate Vote 1 Vote 2 Vote 3 Vote 4 Vote 5

by Eduardo Rincón-Gallardo

Pascuala is a baby orca (also called killer whale), that was stranded in San Blas north of Puerto Vallarta, after having been entangled in a fisdhing net a month and a half ago.

Many feared for her life, as she, just a few days old, could only survive on her mother's milk, besides being injured to an unknown extent, unable even to swim and come up to breathe without help.

With the dedicated care of the local people of San Blas, biologists and veterinarians and staff from Vallarta Adventures' Dolphin Center in Nuevo Vallarta, Pascuala (as she was baptized by the people of San Blas for having been stranded during the week of Easter, Pascua in Spanish) has made a very fortunate recovery.

At a time there were efforts to transport her to the Sea World in San Diego, as there is no other facility better equipped and qualified to deal with orcas and that would have been the safest path to follow.

However, such procedure requires the authorization of the Mexican government and the govenrment will not approve so readily as the move could help unleash an unwanted traffic of animal species.

When I first saw her she was kept in a small inflatable tank where she was aided to move around and come up to breathe around the clock. Her skin was badly bruised and she seemed unable to move her tail or fluke. She had definitely lost weight and her survival was very questionable.

The next time I visited her she had been placed in a larger pool and was being fed a milk-like formula high on fats by means of a funnel attached to a slim hose into her mouth. Her weight had stabilized at 185 kg.

(about 400 lbs.) and she measured 2.45m. Dolphin Center head Fernando Miranda would routinely put on his scuba gear and swim with her so she could best learn to use her resources and the pool capacity.

Three weeks later, Pascuala is about a month and a half old, she weighs 202 kg. (444 lbs.) and measures 2.56 meters. She was swimming all about the pool with more energy than ever before. When I came near her pool she approached the edge and let me caress her soft but firm skin. She also appears to be in the process of growing teeth, we will know pretty soon.

I have no new pictures to show you because of restrictions preventing Pascuala to be used to promote commercial activities. The government has not issued a final resolution on where her future home is to be so no facility is yet being built to house her.

She is a gentle creature who has become completely dependent on human company.

We got her entangled in our nets and now we are entangled in a situation we do not seem to find the right solution to.

Let's have a closer look at nature, there is lots to be learned.