Cook Inlet beluga whale calf surfaces next to its mother

A Cook Inlet beluga whale calf (grey) swims next to its mother (white) in Cook Inlet, Alaska, near Anchorage, showing part of the right side of its body. The Cook Inlet Photo-ID Project surveys the waters of Cook Inlet each year to collect data on this endangered population of whales. Part of the data collected include photos like this, which can be used to identify individual whales from the unique pattern of permanent marks and scars on their dorsal surface (i.e., back and sides). The photographs also document when whales are seen with a calf. Scientists from Montana State University, the Cook Inlet Beluga Whale Photo-ID Project, University of Washington, and USGS developed a new model to use these photographic data to estimate the population’s survival and reproductive rates, something that hadn’t been possible previously. Their work showed that the population has a low reproductive rate and that some individuals in the population are not surviving as long as expected. The researchers hope that this information will provide new insights into why the Cook Inlet beluga whale population continues to decline. Photo taken under MMPA/ESA Research Permit #18016. Read more at: https://doi.org/10.1111/2041-210X.14032. Copyright Photo taken by Cook Inlet Beluga Whale Photo-ID Project.