Orca in Open Water Page 5
when sick or hurt animals are treated and cared for; the animals are freed once they are able to live on their own.
transmit (trans-MIT)—
to send something from one place to another
undernourishment (uhn-der-NUR-ish-mehnt)—
when a person or animal doesn’t have enough food to stay strong and healthy
urgency (UR-juhn-see)—
needing quick or immediate attention
Talk About It
Elsa and the others need to be very careful when moving August from the ocean to the sanctuary. What are some of the steps they need to take to ensure August’s safety?
While Oceanarium claims it takes care of animals, its goals are very different from those of Seaside Sanctuary and SJS. How are Davis Hammond’s goals regarding the orcas different from Arden and Dr. Roth’s goals?
Elsa is surprised at herself when she calls out Davis for his treatment of the orcas at Oceanarium. Why do you think she’s able to talk to him the way she does?
Write About It
Cooper writes Elsa a letter at the end of this book, updating her on what’s happened since she and Olivia left. Put yourself in Elsa’s shoes and write a reply to Cooper.
Special care is taken to make sure August experiences as little human interaction as possible while at the sanctuary. Write a list of reasons why it was important to keep him away from humans.
August’s rescue and release was very dangerous for him. Choose one of the characters who stayed with August during his journey and write a journal entry describing how he or she felt during the boat rides.
More About Orcas
Orcas are very social members of the dolphin family. Did you know orca pods can have up to 40 members? Here are ten more facts that might surprise you.
Orcas are found in every ocean on Earth. They are most commonly found in colder water but sometimes travel to warmer locations.
When first born, an orca can weigh up to 400 pounds and measure up to seven feet in length.
Orcas are the largest member of the dolphin family. A fully grown orca is usually 23–32 feet long and can weigh up to six tons!
Resident orcas prefer to hunt and eat fish and live in larger pods. Transient orcas hunt and eat marine mammals, such as seals, and travel in pods of 10 or less.
Orcas are some of the world’s strongest predators. They eat fish, squid, seabirds, seals, and sometimes even whales!
Female orcas give birth to one calf every five years or so. They nurse their babies for one to two years. Mother orcas teach their babies how to hunt, and make sure they stay close until they’re ready to swim on their own.
Orcas don’t open their mouths to make sounds. Instead they squeeze air through sacs in their heads.
Orcas use echolocation, sounds and echoes, to communicate and locate objects.
Orcas can make unique noises. Each pod has specific noises that members recognize.
No two orcas are the same! Each orca has its own unique dorsal fin and a patch near its fin. Scientists are able to identify orcas based on their individual fins and patches.
Seaside Sanctuary
When 12-year-old Elsa Roth’s parents uproot their family and move them from Chicago, Illinois, to a seaside marine biology facility in Charleston, South Carolina, she expects to be lonely and bored. Little does she know that Seaside Sanctuary might just be the most interesting place she could have imagined. Whether she’s exploring her new home, getting to know an amazing animal, or basking in the sun, Elsa realizes there’s fun to be had—and mysteries to be solved—at Seaside Sanctuary.
Read all of Elsa’s seaside adventures!
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Seaside Sanctuary is published by Stone Arch Books
A Capstone Imprint
1710 Roe Crest Drive
North Mankato, Minnesota 56003
www.mycapstone.com
Text and illustrations © 2019 Stone Arch Books
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission of the publisher.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Berne, Emma Carlson, author. | Madrid, Erwin, illustrator.
Title: Orca in open water / by Emma Carlson Berne ; illustrated by Erwin Madrid.
Description: North Mankato, Minnesota : Stone Arch Books, [2019] |
Series: Seaside sanctuary | Summary: Elsa Roth and her best friend, Olivia, are accompanying Elsa’s mother on an expedition to study the diet of orcas in the San Juan Island in the Pacific Northwest, where they are soon caught up in the drama surrounding August, a young orca calf, who has gotten separated from his pod—the marine mammal sanctuary wants to rescue and rehabilitate him for a quick return to his own pod when they can be found, but the local Oceanarium wants to keep him for display.
Identifiers: LCCN 2018044108| ISBN 9781496578624 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781496580313 (pbk.) | ISBN 9781496578662 (ebook pdf) | ISBN 9781496581778 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Killer whale—Juvenile fiction. | Marine parks and reserves—Juvenile fiction. | Wildlife rescue—Juvenile fiction. | Public aquariums—Juvenile fiction. | Captive marine mammals—Juvenile fiction. | Aquatic animal welfare—Juvenile fiction. | San Juan Island (Wash.)—Juvenile fiction. | CYAC: Killer whale—Fiction. | Whales—Fiction. | Marine parks and reserves—Fiction. | Wildlife rescue—Fiction. | Amusement parks—Fiction. | Animals—Treatment—Fiction. | San Juan Island (Wash.)—Fiction.
Classification: LCC PZ7.B455139 Or 2019 | DDC 813.6 [Fic]—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018044108
Designer: Aruna Rangarajan
Photo Credits: Shutterstock: AnSuArt, orca image, Color Brush, design element throughout, KRAUCHANKA HENADZ, design element throughout, Nikiparonak, design element throughout, Theeradech Sanin, design element throughout
Special thanks to Wayne McFee, research wildlife biologist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Ocean Service, for his advice and guidance on the world of dolphins and their rehabilitation. The author is very grateful.
The events in this book were inspired by the true story of Springer, an orphaned orca rescued off Puget Sound and eventually released near Vancouver Island. Springer was reunited with her pod and thrived. She is the only orca known to have been captured by humans and successfully returned to the wild.