Seeing an orca playfully leaping in the waves is beautiful, but seeing an orca known as "Granny" was a truly remarkable and meaningful experience for Orca Network photographer Heather MacIntyre.
MacIntyre spotted the whale off Washington state's San Juan Island frolicking in the waves like a young orca.
Only Granny, also known as "J2," is 105 years old. (Yes, really.)
Granny lives with her pod, known as the J Pod, in the Northern Pacific waters. As MacIntyre watched, her family, which includes two adopted sons, joined her in leaping into the air.
And while an orca living a long, healthy, and fulfilled life is a beautiful thing, it's also indicative of how orcas in captivity don't have these things.
Orcas living in small tanks and forced to perform tricks typically only live to be about 30, but in the wild, orcas can live anywhere from 30 to 60 years old.
So while Granny is certainly an exception, it seems to suggest that maybe keeping large, predatory sea creatures in captivity isn't such a great idea.
And combined with all the known health issues that captive orcas face, it's a pretty powerful statement about how our attitudes toward our fellow animals need to be improved for their well-being.
Check out Granny and her family below!
[H/T: The Dodo]
Granny, of J2, is believed to be the world's oldest orca at about 105 years old. This is unusual, even for wild orcas, but certainly many times the life span of captive orcas.
She was most recently spotted off San Juan Island in Washington state by photographer Heather McIntyre.
Granny appeared to be in perfect health, leaping and splashing in the waves like an orca a fraction of her age.
Her freedom, her closeness with her family, and a relatively peaceful life are considered the main reasons why she's lived this long and is in such great shape.
MacIntyre was certainly in the right place at the right time, and even more luckily (especially for us), she had her camera.
But as magical a moment as this was, it was also bittersweet for MacIntyre, who knows that due to climate change, pollution, and other careless human activity, these magical sightings are getting more and more rare.
In the 1970s, marine parks like SeaWorld stole countless orca calves to raise in captivity, which drove orca populations down.
Today, now that the capture of wild orca calves has been outlawed, the largest challenge facing orcas is the lack of chinook salmon, one of the mainstays of their diet.
The culprit? Likely, overfishing.
MacIntyre hopes that humans wake up quickly and make the world a bit more accommodating for these majestic, but fragile, creatures.
Luckily for J Pod, though, Granny's age comes with a lot of wisdom and her knowledge of the waters, Orca Network believes, has been integral in keeping the pod well fed.
"Granny has seen the days of 100-pound salmon," MacIntyre says.
"Now, with the salmon disappearing, she could be the last hope. We don't know how long she's going to live. I hope we can show the same compassion for her family that she she does by taking action to protect them."
If you want to help Granny and all the other orcas out there, check out Orca Network's website and Facebook page.
You can also check out the Southern Resident Killer Whale Chinook Salmon Initiative, which is working to replenish salmon populations, thus bolstering wild orcas.
To see Granny in action, be sure to watch the beautiful video below!
SHARE this incredible, resilient whale with everyone you know to keep her swimming happily!
