Tribute to Tahlequah
You may have seen the heartbreaking news. Tahlequah J35, the Southern Resident orca, tragically lost another newborn and again spent weeks sacrificing precious energy to carry her deceased calf in a display of grief.
Southern Resident orcas face immense challenges, and chinook salmon are vital to their survival. As much as 80% of the Southern Residents’ diet is chinook salmon and one of the largest historical sources of these salmon at a critical time of the year – winter – has been the Snake River. Restoring a free-flowing lower Snake River is essential to recover critical salmon runs and help feed struggling Southern Residents.
In honor of the endangered Southern Resident Orcas, Northwest Artists Against Extinction and Save Our wild Salmon put out a call for art with the intention of “Sending Love to Tahlequah” call for art was a huge success!
Please peruse the gorgeous 2025 Tahlequah Tribute flipbook below. It is full of original artwork and poems created by passionate advocates and creatives.
If you have trouble viewing the flipbook, you can download the PDF 
What you can do!
Make art and share it with the world
Post your art social media.
Sample message: “Tahlequah: We see you, and we must act now. Restoring the lower Snake River and its endangered salmon runs is essential to help prevent orca extinction. Urge @GovFerguson to act for salmon and orca recovery”
Sample message: "A free-flowing lower Snake River offers hope for orcas, salmon, and communities. Urge @GovFerguson to act for salmon and orca recovery.”
Add your voice
Contact Governor Ferguson with your message. You can do this using this form:
