A whale that swam about 20 miles inland on the Willapa River in Washington state has died, the Cascadia Research Collective said on Saturday, May 25, 2025, ET. The juvenile gray whale, nicknamed “Willapa Willy” by locals, had been watched for days in the river’s north fork, where it was first seen last Wednesday, about 145 miles southwest of Seattle. Researchers said the whale was thin and they believe hunger may have played a role.
Researchers confirm the whale is dead
The Cascadia Research Collective said it was saddened to confirm that the whale seen in the Willapa River over the past few days was deceased. The group said it was evaluating whether conditions were safe enough to conduct an examination. Earlier in the week, biologists described the whale as behaving normally and noted no sign of injuries.
Teams had hoped the whale would leave the river on its own, but it did not. The animal’s presence drew close attention because it had moved far inland, an unusual route for a gray whale. The whale was found in the north fork of the river, where researchers continued to monitor it as the situation developed.
Whale hunger and migration patterns
John Calambokidis, a research biologist with the Cascadia Research Collective, said gray whales undertake long spring migrations north along the Pacific Coast to feed in the Arctic and use up nutritional reserves along the way. He said that when that happens, gray whales often search more desperately for new areas to feed. Calambokidis said that was the most likely context for this whale. The keyword whale also fits the wider concern researchers have raised about food stress in the species.
Calambokidis said gray whales in the eastern Pacific have faced reduced food availability in the northern Bering and Chukchi seas off Alaska’s coast in recent years. He said the species is facing a major crisis, with feeding on prey in the Arctic at the center of the problem.
Signs of strain beyond the river
Two adult gray whales washed up dead in the nearby Ocean Shores area earlier in April, and Cascadia Research Collective said both were malnourished. The group added that the male had significant trauma to the head, consistent with ship strike. The National Marine Fisheries Service says gray whales can grow to about 15 meters long and weigh about 40, 000 kilograms, and that they face threats from vessel strikes and entanglement in fishing gear during their long migrations.
NOAA Fisheries’ most recent winter 2025 count put the population at about 13, 000, the lowest estimate since the 1970s. That number adds urgency to each new strand or death, especially when a whale is already thin and traveling outside normal patterns.
What happens next in the Willapa case
Researchers have not said when an examination might happen, and they have not released new details about the whale’s condition beyond the confirmation of death. The next step will depend on safety at the location and whether a closer look is possible. For now, the case stands as another stark sign of stress for the species, and the death of this whale is likely to keep attention on what is happening in the Arctic feeding grounds and along the Pacific migration route.
