Artificially inseminated whale gives birth in US
Date: 04-Sep-01
Country: USA
A 25-year-old orca named Kasatka gave birth to the healthy calf at 8:50 p.m. on the weekend, SeaWorld spokeswoman Darla Davis said. The whale of a baby weighs between 300 to 350 pounds (136 to 159 kg) and measures between six and seven feet (1.8 to 2.1 meters) long.
Kasatka gave birth to the calf after a 17-month pregnancy that ended with four hours of labor at Shamu Stadium's main show pool.
Moments after leaving the womb, the calf instinctively swam to the water's surface to take its first breath, SeaWorld spokesman Bob Tucker said.
Davis said Kasatka appeared to be nursing her baby, whose gender had yet to be determined.
The artificial insemination procedure that produced the calf was the result of 12 years of research by Dr. Todd Robeck at SeaWorld in San Antonio, Texas, Tucker said.
