A one-month-old orca tragically died. It doesn’t have to be this way, Friend.

Baby Southern Resident orca J60 dead after just one month of life. Donate $10 today and help us hit our $4,000 goal to protect the orcas that remain and our planet! Dear Friend, Baby Southern Resident orca J60 dead after just one month of life. Donate $10 today and help us hit our $4,000 goal to protect the orcas that remain and our planet! If you've saved payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately: [Donate $10 immediately]( [Donate $27 immediately]( [Donate $50 immediately]( [Donate another amount]( An emaciated young orca struggles through his native waters. Excruciating pangs of hunger surge through him. He lets out a call for his mother. But she’s nowhere to be found – and the pain is getting worse. Stranded and alone, he can’t fight anymore. His body goes limp and slowly begins to sink to the ocean floor. This gruesome tale is the fate that awaits endangered Southern Resident orca calves. Some have already lived nightmares like these: just one month after his birth, the newest baby Southern Resident orca – J60 – was presumed dead. He most likely starved to death – his last moments filled with pain and fear. [Friend, we must put a stop to these preventable orca deaths. Donate $10 today to help us reach our $4,000 goal to protect the last Southern Resident orcas and our planet!]( As their food sources grow harder to find, Southern Resident orca mothers rarely carry their babies to term. Many of their pregnancies end in miscarriage. That’s why we were elated to welcome J60 to the world at Christmastime last year. His arrival wasn’t just a gift – it was a miracle. But that joy and the hope this birth sparked would be short lived. With J60’s death, his family is reeling in grief. Grief that can drive them even further into starvation. In this state, these precious creatures won’t survive much longer. That’s why we set a goal to raise $4,000 by midnight TONIGHT to protect the remaining 75 Southern Resident orcas, their ocean habitats, and the planet before we run out of time. Will you join the fight today? Southern Resident orcas are starving to death. Donate $10 today and help us reach our $4,000 goal for to protect them and our planet. If you've saved payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately: [Donate $10 immediately]( [Donate $27 immediately]( [Donate $50 immediately]( [Donate another amount]( Right now, there are fewer Southern Resident orcas swimming through the sea than there have been since the 1980s. One reason is because there aren’t enough fish in the sea to feed them. These orcas mainly feed on Chinook salmon, which were once abundant in their Pacific Northwest waters. But these fish have substantially declined in the last decades, becoming endangered themselves and leading these orcas to starvation, stress, and miscarriages. Now, Big Oil projects threaten to make things even harder for orcas. The Roberts Bank T2 shipping terminal project and the proposed Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion would make Chinook salmon even harder to find. The projects would cause more and more shipping traffic – which would drive away the few salmon left for orcas to eat. Not to mention, a pipeline expansion would pump MILLIONS of gallons per day of TOXIC dirty oil in oil tankers through delicate orca habitat. We know that with projects like these, oil spills aren’t a matter of “if” – they’re a matter of “when.” Local communities that used to watch orcas thrive could instead be seeing oil-covered sea life washing up on their shores. Those who make their living fishing could see their livelihoods devastated by the polluted waters. And one major oil spill would be enough to wipe out Southern Resident orcas forever. On the off chance an oil spill doesn’t occur, the massive ships from these projects release harmful noise pollution. But orcas rely on sonar for hunting – so increased noise would confuse them and make it harder to find food. Between the lack of salmon and the disruption of their hunting methods, orcas could starve to death and be driven to extinction. We can’t let it come to that, Friend. Southern Resident orcas are one major oil spill away from EXTINCTION. Fight the megaprojects that threaten their existence and protect our planet with your $10 donation. If you've saved payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately: [Donate $10 immediately]( [Donate $27 immediately]( [Donate $50 immediately]( [Donate another amount]( It’s critical that we protect orcas. They’re important to a thriving ocean habitat and our own health. They release vital nutrients for phytoplankton – tiny sea organisms that provide HALF of the oxygen we breathe while absorbing hundreds of thousands of tons of carbon each year! We depend on this flow of nutrients for healthy ecosystems and a functioning planet, which is why we can’t afford to lose even one more of these innocent creatures. Each tragic death in these pods reduces the chances of the remaining orcas’ survival. With these 75 precious lives at stake and at increased risk, we need to step up our fight to protect them. But the shipping and oil industries are only interested in their own profit, even if it means orca families are left reeling in grief for their deceased loved ones. All the while, local communities will be forced to breathe polluted air and suffer the consequences of marine life die-offs. Friends of the Earth is working to push federal, state and local decision-makers to increase protections for Southern Resident orcas, and we’re trying to stop these deadly projects before they cause irreparable damage. But we need your help to step up our fight. Your membership donation today will help us protect these orcas and other vulnerable species as well as people and our planet from greedy corporate interests. Please rush your $10 contribution today and help us reach our $4,000 fundraising goal by midnight TONIGHT before we lose orcas forever! Don’t stand by while orcas suffer and disappear. Donate $10 today and help us reach our urgent $4,000 goal before another orca dies! If you've saved payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately: [Donate $10 immediately]( [Donate $27 immediately]( [Donate $50 immediately]( [Donate another amount]( Standing with you, Marcie Keever Oceans & vessels program director, Friends of the Earth Contact Us: Friends of the Earth U.S. Washington, D.C. | Berkeley, CA PO Box 7010 Merrifield, VA 22116-7010 1-877-843-8687 [Contact us]( Email Preferences: [Click here to unsubscribe]( Learn more: www.foe.org/news www.foe.org/about-us www.foeaction.org Connect: [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Flickr]( © 2024, Friends of the Earth. All Rights Reserved. [supporter]