Welcome back to the second episode of the Knockabout Travel Podcast. Today, we are traveling to the Pacific Northwest to explore the lives of an endangered family of orcas that makes its seasonal home in the waters of the Salish Sea. The name sounds exotic and mystical, but it’s really just the inland waters around Seattle and Vancouver Island. The orcas, known as the Southern Resident Killer Whales have had a tough time in recent years. Some of them are near starvation due to lack of food, which has diminished their ability to reproduce. Their numbers have dropped from around 98 whales in the mid-1990s to only 74 today.

My guest today is Lynne Barre, marine biologist and Branch Chief for the Protected Resources Division of NOAA. Lynne goes into detail about the orcas’ behavior, family structure, what is endangering their existence, and what can be done about it.

This episode was actually recorded close to two years ago for another podcast that I was doing, Intrepid Northeast, which covered outdoor lifestyle. But that endeavor was canceled shortly after recording, so I never was able to release the interview. Because the interview pertains to a specific location, I thought it appropriate to release it here. The information is still accurate and relevant. I hope you enjoy this episode.