Who was Luna?
Luna is a very special orca from Nootka Sound off the west coast of Canada. In 2001, he became separated from his family (the L-pod). One theory is that he was alone with his uncle when his uncle died, and Luna therefore was left all alone. Luna was not yet 2 years old at the time and had only just learned to catch his own food. Since orcas are very social, he started making friends with the locals in Nootka Sound since his own family was gone.
The following years were filled with disputes between the government and whale protection groups. Everyone had their own idea of how best to help Luna. Some wanted to give him the company he sought, and others insisted he should live without human contact. The dispute lasted for roughly five years and was likely hard for Luna. He befriended different people and groups only to have them stop reciprocating his friendship on the orders of the government. Some people insisted on giving him friendship and fought the government.
In the end, Luna was one day swimming around the back of a tugboat making friends, but was hit by the propeller and sadly did not survive. Luna is very special to me and is part of why I made this course. So I saw it as fitting that the course be named after him.
May he always be remembered.
If you want more of Luna’s story, you can watch the terrific documentary called The Whale (2011) by Mike Parfit and Suzanne Chisholm.
Luna’s story is a reminder of how much whales need us to understand them. That is what this site is for.
