Beating the Odds
Episode description
About 5 years ago, a month old beluga whale calf from the endangered subpopulation of cetaceans native to Cook Inlet Alaska stranded on a mud flat. Much to the surprise of initial responders from the Alaska Sealife Center, the little male was still alive but in serious condition. Over the next serval days and weeks, members of the marine mammal zoological community rallied from across the U.S. to provide medical resources and staffing to provide him around the clock care. By early 2018, NOAA Fisheries deemed the young whale non-releasable due to his young age, health status, and lack of survival skills. The government decided the best location to continue his recovery was with the large beluga pod at SeaWorld of Texas. Curator Katie Kolodziej describes this remarkable young cetacean named Tyonek and the process of introducing him to his new pod of beluga whales and the instrumental role one special pacific white-sided dolphin played in his success.