NHK<\/a>, showed at least 10 orca gasping for air and struggling in a small gap between ice floes. Officials returned to the coast on Tuesday evening and noted the pod had moved north which gave some hope to us all here at MotherOceanBlue. Officials from Rausu on the Shiretoko peninsula then told the news outlet that they were waiting for the ice to break up naturally. \u201cWe have no choice but to wait for the ice to break up and for them to escape that way,\u201d a Rausu official was quoted as saying.<\/p>\n\n\n\nOn Wednesday morning they returned to search for the exhausted orca family. Rausu official Masataka Shirayanagi said, they were gone and they believe the killer whales were able to free themselves from the drift ice as gaps between them grew.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The footage, prompted global concern for the condition of the orca pod and there have been many pleas, petitions and letters for the Japanese government to help. Many individuals and organisations have submitted requests in the form of letters, emails and online petitions asking the Defence Ministry to mobilise an ice breaker to help free them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Drift Ice In Japan<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nEvery winter, the eastern coast of Hokkaido, Japan becomes covered with drift ice. However, in recent years, due to climate change, there has been a noticeable reduction in the amount of ice due to warming sea temperatures. Officials noted that this week the movement of ice sheets has been minimal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nThis is not the first time a pod of killer whales have become trapped in Rausu. In 2005, nine orcas died after becoming trapped in drift ice.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Although the trapped whales were in Japanese waters, they were not far from an island that is disputed by Japan and Russia. Japan marked the annual Northern Territory Day on Wednesday to renew its demand for the return of the Russian-held islands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The former Soviet Union seized the islands from Japan at the end of World War II and the disputed area has prevented the two countries from ever signing a peace treaty which would formally end their war hostilities. Moscow announced it was cutting off negotiations with Tokyo over Japanese sanctions following Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters on Wednesday that killer whales are not designated as an endangered species in Japan and that officials were monitoring the situation while Japan and Russia communicated over the issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
**UPDATE:THE POD HAS BEEN SPOTTED ALIVE AND WELL\nNational Geographic photographer and Hokkaido tour guide Paul Whitton has provided visual confirmation of the pod and reports that they are safe and well - 9th Feb 24. Despite most media and news outlets reporting the suspected saftety of the pod a few days ago, we have waited for an eye witness confirmation. Wonderful news!\n\nWhat a great relief for all of us waiting for good news. Thank you both for taking the time to let us all know. \nThe area is now being monitored for sightings of the pod and we are hoping for confirmation of good news for this orca family. We truly hope they are free and will update this story via our instagram feed @motheroceanblue<\/a> and here. We hope to share happy news.\n\n*FURTHER READING: New Scientist Article on Orca Trapped in Ice<\/a><\/pre>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"News of the trapped orca pod in Japan has caused worldwide concern this week. Today we have news that the pod are not visible with a press release from Rausu …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":3324,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[68],"tags":[71,70,69,72],"yoast_head":"\n
Orca Trapped in Ice - Mother Ocean Blue<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/motheroceanblue.com\/orca-trapped-in-ice\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Orca Trapped in Ice - Mother Ocean Blue\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"News of the trapped orca pod in Japan has caused worldwide concern this week. 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