A37 Plumper

A5 "Plumper" ID image. Date unknown. Photo provided by Killer Whales: The Natural History and Genealogy of Orcinus Orca in British Columbia and Washington.

## Family

### Nieces & Nephews

I42 "Skuna"

A37 "Plumper" was an approximately 37-year-old male Northern Resident killer whale.

## Early Life

A37 "Plumper" was born to A36 "Sophia" in an estimated 1977, based on his body size when first observed in 1978. He was her second confirmed calf, but third calf with the addition of her assumed eldest calf, A32 "Cracroft". At the time of his birth, the A1 matriline consisted of his mother, uncle, and older brother. In 1982, Plumper became the older brother of A46 "Kaikash".

He was presumably named after Plumper Cove in British Columbia, Canada.

## Three Brothers

By the 1990s, it was suspected that Plumper's mother, A36 "Sophia", had reached the end of her reproductive cycle as she had not been sighted with any new calves in some time. It was around this time, researchers knew that the A1 matriline would die out as they only consisted of Plumper, his brothers, and his mother. In 1997, Sophia was declared deceased, leaving the three brothers to travel by themselves.

In 2009, the three brothers, as they were often referred to, were joined by A12 "Scimitar". The adult female was from the A12s, but after the death of her last son, A33 "Nimpkish" she was reported to travel more frequently with Plumper and his siblings. In 2010, Plumper lost his older brother Cracroft and then in 2012 Scimitar was reported deceased. These deaths left Plumper and Kaikash as the remaining brothers who would often travel with other members of the A1 Pod and sometimes other Northern Residents.

## Death

In July 2013, Plumper and Kaikash were sighted with the former notably far behind. In subsequent encounters this became a trend especially when the two brothers were seen the following year in a similar fashion. In a 2014 August encounter, Plumper was noted to be visibally unwell as he and his brother entered Blackney Pass. Photos of the encounter show A37 with a leaning dorsal fin, peanut head, and with eyewitness reports of him struggling against the current to surface.

Plumper was last sighted on August 21 2014, and was declared missing. He was not listed in the 2015 ID catalogue subsequently declaring him deceased. In his death he left his youngest brother A46 "Kaikash" as the sole survivor of the A1 matriline.

## References

1. ↑ Michael A. Bigg et al., "Social Organization and Genealogy of Resident Killer Whales (Orcinus orca) in the Coastal Waters of British Columbia and Washington State", in Rep. Int. Whal. Commn. (Special Issue 12), ed. Phillip S. Hammond, Sally A. Mizroch, and Gregory P. Donovan (Cambridge, UK: IWC, 1990), 383-405.
2. ↑ Ford, J. K. B., Ellis, G. M., & Balcomb, K. C. (2000). Killer Whales: The Natural History and Genealogy of Orcinus Orca in British Columbia and Washington State (Updated Edition) (Updated 2nd ed.). Univ of Washington Pr.
3. ↑ Killer Whales of B.C. (2014, August 22). A new picture of Plumper A37. . .. from Nick Templeman [Facebook post]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/NorthernResidents/photos/a.717212055007146/746295482098803/
4. ↑ Photo-identification catalogue and status of the northern resident killer whale population in 2014 / by J.R. Towers, G.M. Ellis, and J.K.B. Ford, Pacific Region, Science Branch
5. ↑ Northern Resident Orca Population. (2019, July 29). A36s died out. . . [Facebook post]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/nrkwtracking/posts/a36s-died-outthe-6-feet-tall-fins-of-the-three-brothers-sliced-through-the-water/1394198290731255/