New Issue: Orbital Catastrophe Ahead? Read Now

The Protectors: Inside the Desperate Rush to Save an Orca Community

As endangered southern resident killer whales fight for survival, federal funding cuts threaten the scientists working to save them.

Join Our Community of Science Lovers!


On supporting science journalism

If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.


Want to read or hear this story instead? Check out the related feature article or Science Quickly podcast episode.

Carin Leong is a documentary filmmaker based in New York. Her projects have received support from Field of Vision, the Singapore International Film Festival, IN-DOCS, and the Tribeca Film Institute. Her work has appeared in Scientific American, Hakai Magazine, and The Atlantic. She holds a master's degree in science journalism from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism and is also a graduate of New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.

More by Carin Leong

Kelso Harper is an award-winning journalist and producer and former senior multimedia editor at Scientific American. They have a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Johns Hopkins University and a master’s degree in science writing from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. They have also worked with Wired, Science, Popular Mechanics, and MIT News. Follow them on LinkedIn and Instagram.

More by Kelso Harper

Subscribe to Support Independent Journalism

Great science journalism requires human expertise, time, effort and creativity. And it costs money. That’s why I and the journalists here at Scientific American hope you’ll join our community.

When you subscribe, you are supporting staff and freelance journalists who are passionate about telling science stories that are true, important and compelling. Our editors and reporters are often experts in their fields, which means they understand the nuances of big discoveries and can untangle the breakthroughs from the hype. With a subscription, you are also supporting rigorous fact-checking to ensure the words we publish are precise and accurate. And you’re supporting original illustrations, graphics and photos that bring you closer to an advanced laboratory, an ice sheet in Antarctica or a space mission in orbit. You’re helping us craft other types of high-quality journalism as well: Our newsletters are carefully written, edited and curated by staffers you have or will come to know and love. Our Science Quickly podcast is based on original reporting, collaboration with editors and scientists and exacting production.

Subscriptions keep this engine running so we can continue to deliver thoughtful, rigorous and independent science journalism to you. In an era of viral misinformation, this work is crucial. If you value what we do, I hope you’ll consider joining us as a subscriber

Thank you,

Jeanna Bryner, Editor in Chief, Scientific American

Subscribe