An eccentric and sometimes gruff scientist with a gray beard and a weathered look, Balcomb had a single-minded devotion to the whales.
VIDEO: Beloved orca researcher Ken Balcomb passes away at 82SEATTLE — Ken Balcomb, a researcher who spent nearly five decades studying the Pacific Northwest’s charismatic and endangered killer whales — and whose findings helped end their capture for display at marine parks in the 1970s — died Thursday following an illness. He was 82.
The whale-capture industry argued that there were many orcas in the sea, and that some could be sustainably caught. The Canadian and U.S. governments sought to conduct surveys to get a better sense of the animal populations. Even after other researchers lost interest in the whales in the 1980s, Balcomb persisted, recalled Brad Hanson, a wildlife biologist with NOAA Fisheries who first met Balcomb in 1976.
He advocated for the breaching of four massive dams on the Snake River to restore salmon habitats, and he had little patience for politicians who dithered rather than act to save the whales. “I’m not going to count them to zero — at least not quietly,” he often said.
Malaysia Latest News, Malaysia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Ken Balcomb, researcher who championed orcas in the PNW, dies at 82Ken Balcomb, a researcher who spent five decades studying the Pacific Northwest’s charismatic and endangered killer whales — and whose findings helped end their capture for display at marine parks in the 1970s — died Thursday following an illness. He was 82.
Read more »
Orca researcher Ken Balcomb who helped end the capture of orcas for marine parks dies at 82Ken Balcomb, an orca researcher who championed the endangered species for nearly five decades, dies at 82 years old from prostate cancer in Washington.
Read more »
Citadel's Ken Griffin sues IRS over 'unlawful' tax return leakBillionaire investor and Citadel CEO Ken Griffin filed a lawsuit against the IRS after his confidential tax records were leaked and reported publicly.
Read more »
Ken DeLand: Missing American student in France is member of conservative campus organization, group saysAn American college student who is missing in France while studying abroad is a member of the conservative college student organization, TPUSA.
Read more »
Mega-Billionaire Ken Griffin Has Moved His Masterpieces to the BeachThe Citadel founder and big-time GOP donor proudly picked up stakes from Chicago and moved to Florida earlier this year. An eye-popping portion of his collection has quietly followed.
Read more »