Proceeds from orca adoptions support ongoing education, research and public outreach on behalf of the Southern Resident Community of killer whales.

Adopt one of the Southern Resident Community killer whales and the proceeds will support orca education and research. Whales in the three pods who have been named are available for adoption through our Orca Adoption Program. Simply click on a whale image above to learn more about each individual whale. This is also where you would adopt him or her.

Your adoption comes with a free 1-year membership, which entitles you to free admission to The Whale Museum Exhibit Hall and a 10% discount on in-store and online merchandise purchases. While shipping is included in the price of most adoptions, to cover rising postage costs, additional shipping charges may be required.

Currently, Eco-Friendly Orca Adoptions are only available as an Individual Adoption. When ordering, just select Individual Adoption the delivery type of Email (Eco-Friendly).

Prefer to mail in your form with payment? Click here to download the Orca Adoption Brochure & Form.

 

We've got a variety of adoption packages:

Individual Adoption
$50/year

A one-year individual adoption includes:

  • A personalized adoption certificate with a 3" x 5" photo of your whale.
  • A personal biography of your whale.
  • A genealogy chart.
  • A 16-page informational booklet about the Southern Resident Orcas.
  • An annual subscription to our Cetus newsletter.
  • Monthly orca updates delivered via email.
  • 1 "Orca Steward" patch.
  • 1 bumper sticker.
  • A one-year Whale Museum individual membership.
  • Eco-friendly option available (patch, bumper sticker and 16-page Southern Resident Orca booklet not included).

Family Adoption
$75/year

A one-year family adoption includes:

  • A personalized adoption certificate with a 3" x 5" photo of your whale.
  • A personal biography of your whale.
  • A genealogy chart.
  • A 16-page informational booklet about the Southern Resident Orcas.
  • An annual subscription to our Cetus newsletter.
  • Monthly orca updates delivered via email.
  • 2 "Orca Steward" patches.
  • 2 bumper stickers.
  • A soft-framed 5" x 7" photo (taken from shore) of members of your whale's pod.
  • A one-year Whale Museum family membership.

Classroom Adoption
$80/year

A one-year classroom adoption includes:

  • A personalized adoption certificate with a 3" x 5" photo of your whale.
  • A personal biography of your whale.
  • A genealogy chart.
  • A 16-page informational booklet about the Southern Resident Orcas.
  • An annual subscription to our Cetus newsletter.
  • Monthly orca updates delivered via email.
  • Personalized adoption certificates for up to 30 students (Contact us if there are more than 30)
  • Activities and handouts for the classroom.
  • A one-year Whale Museum individual membership for the teacher.

Note Adoptions are processed and mailed within 3 business days of receipt. You will be notified when your adoption is about to expire.

How Do I Choose A Whale?

Orca whales are as unique as people are.

Whether you are adopting a whale for yourself or for someone else, the best matches are based on commonalities. We've learned that the strongest bonds form between people and whales that are the same gender and in the same age range. For example, if you are adopting an orca for a child or grandchild (or parent or grandparent) start by finding whales that are the same gender and about the same age.

A life-long relationship awaits!

How to adopt a whale:

  1. 1  Visit the top of this page to browse the whales.

  2. 2  Click the    icon to view all of the whales.

  3. 3  Click   Search  to find whales by name, age, gender and pod.

  4. 4  Click on a whale photo to learn more about it.

  5. 5  Click   Reset  to clear your search.

Looking for gift ideas?

  •  Hy'Shqa's name means "thank you", or "blessing".

  •  Joy is a great choice for celebrating a joyous occasion.

  •  Princess Angeline was featured in the "Free Willy" movies.

  •  Yoda is popular with fans of the "Star Wars" movies.

...or find the adoption package you'd like and select a whale from the drop-down menu.

Where Does The Money Go?

Thanks for asking! Proceeds from the Orca Adoptions directly benefit our education programs and research efforts.

Our biggest effort is our Exhibit Hall which is open to the public nearly year-round. Through two floors of exhibits, visitors learn more about the Southern Resident Community of orcas, other marine mammals and the Salish Sea ecosystem.  We hope that by learning about this richly diverse yet fragile ecosystem, visitors will be inspired to become better stewards.

Our education efforts include:

Our research includes:

Want to get involved, stay informed and be engaged?