Kalina (pronounced KAH-lee-nah), also known as “Baby Shamu,” was a 25-year-old female killer whale who lived at SeaWorld Orlando. She was born there head-first at 6:21 PM EST on September 26th, 1985. Her mother was Katina, an Icelandic killer whale, and her father was Winston, a Southern resident killer whale, making Kalina 50% Icelandic, 50% Southern resident. She was the first killer whale to be successfully born and raised in captivity. Kalina passed away due to bacteremia and septicemia on October 4th, 2010 at SeaWorld Orlando. She was one of the few whales to spend time at all four SeaWorld parks.
Birth & Early Life[]
Katina and Kalina. Photo provided by SeaWorld.
In early spring of 1984, Katina became pregnant. While at SeaWorld San Diego, she had mated with a male named Winston. When she was transferred to SeaWorld Ohio for the summer, trainers realized that she was pregnant. At the end of the season, Katina was sent to SeaWorld Orlando. On the afternoon of September 26th, 1985, Katina went into labor. Kalina was born head-first, which is very rare. Cetaceans born head-first can drown if they aren’t born fast enough. Kalina was born alive, however, and became the first killer whale to be successfully born and raised in captivity. Kalina, nicknamed "Baby Shamu", quickly became famous. SeaWorld was very proud of their little whale, and used her prolifically in advertisements and media. Kalina made international headlines. Kalina was popular in shows, and even as a calf she often did waterworks.
Kona II and Kalina. Photo provided by SeaWorld.
Although Kalina was Katina’s first calf, she was a very good mother. Kona II, another Icelandic female, helped Katina take care of Kalina, and the three often performed together.
On November 4th, 1988, Katina gave birth to Kalina’s half-sister, Katerina. Kalina was present for her birth, and later helped her mother take care of Katerina. She learned how to care for a calf by spending time with Katerina. Kalina, Katina, Katerina often spent time with a female named Gudrun and her daughter Taima.
Leaving Orlando[]
Kalina at SeaWorld Ohio. Photo provided by Rob G.
When Kalina was four years old, the decision was made to move her to SeaWorld Ohio. On February 12th, 1990, Kalina was separated from her mother. Katina reportedly spent the following night in the corner of the pool, alone, calling out for her daughter.
Kalina and Corky II. Photo provided by Legsla.
Kalina was moved to SeaWorld Ohio where she met a wild caught Icelandic female named Samoa. The two performed together for several months. At the end of the summer season, Kalina and Samoa were separated, and Kalina moved to SeaWorld San Diego. While there she reunited with Kasatka, a whale she had briefly known in Orlando, and met Corky II and the new "Baby Shamu", Orkid. She only spent 6 months there before she was moved yet again to SeaWorld San Antonio in May of 1991.
Life in San Antonio[]
Keet, Kalina, and Kotar. Photo provided by SeaWorld.
Kalina spent several years at SeaWorld San Antonio. While there she reunited with Samoa and met Kotar, Haida II, and Kyuquot. Shortly after arriving, she became pregnant for the first time. The father was Kotar. On February 2nd, 1993, almost exactly three years after she left her own mother, Kalina gave birth to her first calf, a male named Keet. She was only 7 and a 1/2 when she gave birth to Keet, a very young age for killer whales to become mothers. Despite her age, however, Kalina was a good mother. Like she would go on to do with all of her calves, Kalina taught Keet to be very independent.
When Keet was 1 year old, Kalina got pregnant for a second time, again with Kotar. In order to support her pregnancy, Kalina was separated from Keet and moved back to SeaWorld Orlando. Although Keet was independent, the two were still very close when they were separated.
Back to Orlando[]
Kalina. Photo provided by SeaWorld.
On October 29th, 1994, Kalina was moved back to SeaWorld Orlando. She was reunited with her mother, Gudrun, and Taima, and she was introduced to several new whales. She met Tilikum, Winnie, Nyar, and her 1 year-old brother, Taku. After the move, Katina and Kalina's relationship changed drastically. Katina didn't seem to care about her daughter the way she had before, and Kalina challenged her mother for her place as the most dominant whale of the pod.
9 months after her move she gave birth to her second calf, a male named Keto. Once again she taught him to be very independent. Keto was nicknamed “punk” because he would often disrupt shows. The year after Keto’s birth, Kalina’s half-sister, Unna, was born. Kalina spent a lot of time with her younger sister. Not long after Keto was born, Kalina became pregnant again, this time with Tilikum. Unfortunately, Kalina gave birth to a stillborn in February of 1997. In May of 1998, Taima gave birth to her first calf, a male named Sumar. At first she did well, and Kalina often spent time with Taima and Sumar. 3 months after his birth, however, Taima rejected and began attacking her son. Taima and Sumar were separated and Kalina and Katina took care of him.
Kalina. Photo provided by Ro-hee.
In order to correct his disruptive and rough behavior, Keto was separated from Kalina in March of 1999 and moved to SeaWorld San Diego. Sumar was moved to San Diego with him. Kalina was pregnant for fourth time, again with Tilikum, when Keto and Sumar were moved. Only two months later, she gave birth to another male named Tuar. Although he was originally nicknamed “Flash”, his name officially became Tuar after a public poll. About a year and a half later, Taima gave birth to her second calf, another male named Tekoa. She once again rejected and attacked him, and the two had to be separated. Kalina raised Tekoa alongside her own son. Tekoa and Tuar became very close.
Kalina and Tuar. Photo provided by SeaWorld.
In 2002, Kalina became pregnant for the fifth and final time, again with Tilikum. Later that year her half-brother, Ikaika, was born. On February 9th, 2004, Kalina gave birth to her first daughter, Skyla. Skyla was very independent. She often spent time with her uncle Ikaika and half-sister Kohana who had recently been brought in from San Diego with her mother Takara. About two months after Skyla’s birth, Tuar and Tekoa were separated from Kalina and left Orlando.
In 2006, Kalina and Skyla were separated. When Skyla was moved to another pool and lifted out by a stretcher, Kalina reportedly began to ram violently into the gate that separated them. She ended up with severe lacerations on her face as a result of the ordeal. Skyla was sent to Loro Parque to live with Keto, Tekoa, and Kohana, and Kalina never saw her daughter again.
Kalina. Photo provided by Ocean Echoes.
Although Kalina would never have another calf, she continued to assist other females with their calves. In 2005, Takara had another calf, a son named Trua. A year later, Nalani, Kalina’s half-sister and niece, was also born. When Taima had her third calf, Malia, in 2007, the two were kept with Kalina and Takara. Although Taima was aggressive with Malia at first, the more experienced females helped Taima learn to properly raise her daughter. Taima eventually did not act as aggressively towards Malia as she had with Sumar and Tekoa. Kalina and Taima were very close. Sadly, in 2010, Taima passed away.
Death[]
On October 4th, 2010, trainers noticed that Kalina seemed to be sick. She passed away later that day of Septicemia. She died just a few days before her younger brother, Makaio, was born. There are rumors that she was pregnant via artificial insemination at the time of her death but this has not been confirmed. [1] If this is true then the father would have most likely been Oscar or Ulises, as both whales had semen samples taken prior to 2010. [2]
Personality[]
Kalina. Photo provided by Sara Farrell.
Kalina was a very kind and gentle whale. She was often used as a starter whale for waterworks and she liked to swim with multiple trainers at once, but only if she knew the trainers well. She could get very agitated around strangers. She loved to get attention from trainers and would become upset if she felt like a trainer wasn't giving her their full attention. She was never involved in any major aggressive incidents, but she was known to bump trainers or swim over them in the water when she got excited. She was a very submissive whale. She was often picked on by Tilikum and a female named Kayla who moved to Orlando in 2006. Although all of her own calves were eventually separated from her, she would often help other females in the park raise their calves. [3] Kalina was very close with Taima and spent a lot of time with her.
Appearance[]
Kalina was a stocky whale with small pectoral fins. She inherited her father's small, round eyepatches. Like her mother, her dorsal fin leaned heavily to her left. She had an closed, rounded saddle patch like both of her parents, but it was very bright like her mother’s. She had two large freckles on the right side of her jaw. She had prominent mouth chips. Her right mouth chip was slightly smudged and had two points, while her left mouth chip had one point was shaped like a wave. Her shoulder notches were pointy and curved over her pectoral fins.
Family Tree[]
Trivia[]
- Kalina lived with a total of 32 different whales in her lifetime.
Transfer History[]
| FROM: | TO: | ON: |
|---|---|---|
| SeaWorld Orlando, Florida | SeaWorld Aurora, Ohio | Feb. 12, 1990 |
| SeaWorld Aurora, Ohio | SeaWorld San Diego, California | Oct. 13, 1990 |
| SeaWorld San Diego, California | SeaWorld San Antonio, Texas | May 30, 1991 |
| SeaWorld San Antonio, Texas | SeaWorld Orlando, Florida | Oct. 29, 1994 |