Orphaned baby orca stranded in Canadian lagoon will be airlifted out to join ... trends now
A two-year-old orca that has spent weeks circling a Canadian lagoon where its mother died will soon be airlifted out and released into the Pacific Ocean.
The baby whale's mother became beached on March 23, leaving rescuers scrambling to save the calf from the same fate.
Teams are now gearing up to strap the orphaned whale into a sling and use a helicopter to carry her out sea where she will hopefully find a new pod to join.
The great escape is scheduled for two weeks and is crucial for the whale's survival - otherwise, the baby is likely to die from starvation.
A baby orca named kʷiisaḥiʔis (pronounced kwee-sahay-is) was stranded in a Canadian lagoon last month after a mistimed attack by her mom.
kʷiisaḥiʔis stayed by her mom's side after she breached during low tide in the lagoon and was left lying on her side. Rescuers attempted to douse the mom, named Spong, with water and roll her onto her belly, but after two hours she died.
The baby orca was left stranded with her 14-year-old pregnant mother who breached near the shore - dying two hours after they were spotted and despite attempts to save her.
The Ehattesaht First Nation tribes are part of the local community that met with Canada's fisheries department on Wednesday to discuss alternate options to rescue the whale and determined that airlifting her was the best option.
The team will strap the two-year-old calf into a sling connected to a helicopter, which will then carry the young orca to the sea before placing her in a netted pen until a pod is spotted.
Local tribes named the baby orca kʷiisaḥiʔis (pronounced kwee-sahay-is), which means 'Brave Little Hunter.'
She and her mother, Spong, were discovered in a remote lagoon off the coast of northern Vancouver and experts believe they were stranded by a mistimed attack that left the mother wedged on her side, in a depression along the shore.
Although rescue teams tried to roll Spong onto her belly and doused her with water, she passed away two
