Dead Baby Whale's Mother Says Goodbye After 17 Days With Lifeless Body

A killer whale lost its newborn baby on July 24, who apparently died shortly after birth. The animal did not abandon the body for 17 days during which she covered 1,000 miles.

Recently, scientists that were observing her said that killer whale has stopped carrying her dead newborn calf.

"Her tour of grief is now over and her behaviour is remarkably frisky," the Center for Whale Research said, as quoted by the BBC.

"Telephoto digital images taken from shore show that this mother whale appears to be in good physical condition," the Center for Whale Research added.

Killer whale mother lets her dead newborn go after carrying its body for more than two weeks https://t.co/HvHW22kq2d pic.twitter.com/i4zv1jppJu

— CBC British Columbia (@cbcnewsbc) August 12, 2018

This killer whale is 20 years old, it lives in the Pacific Ocean near the American state of Washington and the Canadian province of British Columbia.

Such behavior is common among dolphins and whales, including killer whales, the Washington Center for the study of whales report said. However, the mother whale usually swims with her dead calves for less than a week.