Whale orca that lost a calf in 2018 has lost another [Video]

The grim update came after a joyful sighting of the creature with a new baby just before Christmas from the Centre for Whale Research in Washington, USA.

The calf born to Tahlequah, known to researchers as J35, was first spotted on December 20 swimming with a pod in the Puget Sound, the Center for Whale Research, said.

Initially, the researchers could not confirm the identity of the calf with certainty.

Lately they “confidently” identified Tahlequah as the mother and the baby was titled as alpha-numeric J61.

However, they said they were “concerned” about its health.

They have now announced the heartbreaking news that the baby has died.

The calf is again being carried by the mother.

“The death of any calf in the SRKW population is a tremendous loss, but the death of J61 is particularly devastating, not just because she was a …