Athena (pronounced uh-THEE-nuh) was a 4-year-old female Icelandic killer whale who lived at Marineland of Canada. She was born there at 7 am EST on August 8th, 2004, in Friendship Cove. Her mother was Kiska and her father was Kandu VII. She passed away due to an unspecified infection on May 24th, 2009 at Marineland of Canada. Athena was Kiska's final calf, and the last captive killer whale to be born in Canada.
Birth and Early Life[]
In the spring of 2003, Kiska mated with Kandu VII and became pregnant. This was her fifth known pregnancy. Given how long it was between Hudson's birth and Athena's conception, Kiska may have gotten pregnant at least once during that time period. Just a few days before Athena's birth, on August 1st, Athena's half sister, Neocia, passed away from an internal infection.
On August 8th, 2004, just after 7 am EST, Kiska gave birth to her first daughter in Marineland's killer whale habitat, Friendship Cove. Within a few hours, guests at Marineland gathered around the pool to see the newborn whale. After a few days, the calf was found to be a female, and around a month later, she was named Athena. At that time, four other whales lived at the park: her mother Kiska, her father Kandu VII, her older brother Hudson, and an adult female, Nootka V. Although Athena initially only lived with her mother, she was eventually introduced to the other whales at the park. Just a few months after her birth, on October 20th, Hudson passed away from meningitis.
Life at Marineland Canada[]
On December 21st, 2005, Athena's father, Kandu, passed away. Almost a year later, in November 2006, another young male named Ikaika was moved to the park. Although Athena could be seen with all of the whales, she spent most of her time with Kiska. On January 8th, 2008, Nootka passed away.
Death[]
On May 24th, 2009, Athena was discovered missing by guests when Marineland opened for its spring operating season. It was later revealed that she passed away after battling an unspecified infection for at least two days. She had become sick very quickly, and reportedly nothing could be done to help her. It was assumed that Athena passed away sometime during the previous winter or spring while the park was closed. Her death was never officially announced by Marineland.
Trivia[]
- Athena was named after the Greek goddess Athena, the goddess of Wisdom. She was named in honor of the Summer Olympic Games that took place in Athens, Greece, in 2004.
- Athena was Kiska's second-longest surviving calf. She lived for 1750 days. She lived for just 2 days longer than one of her older brothers, Nova. Kiska's longest surviving calf was Hudson who survived in captivity for 2227 days.
- After her brother Hudson passed away, Athena was the last ever surviving offspring at Marineland.
Transfer History[]
Athena was never transferred out of Marineland of Canada.
Galleries[]
- Photos of Athena
- Videos of Athena