Hope turns to dismay as a new J pod calf dies before researchers arrive. When mother J35 carries its corpse for 17 days and 1000 miles, the world wakes up to the plight of the Southern Residents. Some call it grief; others, a message, and the drama of that hot summer becomes a symbol of the struggle to save J pod.

Episode 1:  “Tapping Out”

J pod is a poster child in a nation-wrenching debate over a pipeline expansion, and it all comes down to the impact of increased vessel traffic. We take a journey along the noisy west coast waterfront to unravel the mysteries of orca communication, and ask, is noise a killer?

Episode 2: “Sea of Noises”

A family matriarch, J35’s mother, is showing sure signs of peanut head. The experts agree: the Southern Residents are not getting enough fish to eat. But is it as simple as a decline in Chinook salmon? We head out on the latest research expeditions to investigate: is starvation a killer?

Episode 3: Peanut Head

J pod is an urban orca family, but have we made the very water they swim in uninhabitable? And why are other orca populations thriving along the same tainted coast line? From pollution to the blob, we ask, are major ocean changes a killer?

Episode 4: “The Water is the Starting Point”

It’s 1964, and J pod ancestor Moby Doll is harpooned and put on display at Vancouver’s waterfront. The crowds are delighted, until he dies. It’s the beginning of a fraught love affair with orcas that is mirrored today in aquariums and whale watching. Is our attraction to J pod a killer, or can our love save this family?

Episode 5: Tough Love

Host Gloria Macarenko delves into our fraught love affair with the iconic and endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales who have become political poster children for climate change. What’s killing J  ...

A comprehensive account of the challenges facing killer whales off the coast of the United States and Canada, through the lens of a particularly well-studied whale group called “J-pod.” It’s not preachy, and does an excellent job of answering the question “why should I care?”

Excellent

Killers: J pod on the brink

The best podcast episodes on non-current politics. Covering topics such as universal basic income, democracy, poverty & justice and more. For anyone interested in learning more about politics that affect that world, not just now, but in the longer term. Add episodes you're interested into your queue below!

Best Non-Current Politics Podcasts

The best podcast episodes on global issues affecting everyone. Covering topics such as the #metoo movement, climate change, the impact of technology and some of the biggest global issues facing us right now. For anyone interested in learning more about the world, and some of the issues we're facing, pick an episode below and start listening! Add episodes you're interested into your queue below!