INDIANAPOLIS — Tokitae, the captive orca who Colts owner Jim Irsay would have had a hand in repatriating back to the Salish Sea, passed away on Friday afternoon.
The Miami Seaquarium said she died from a potential renal condition, and announced her death on social media.
Friends of Toki, the group that had long worked to return Tokitae back to her native waters, told 13News this of her death:
Over the last two days, Toki started exhibiting serious signs of discomfort, which her full Miami Seaquarium and Friends of Toki medical team began treating immediately and aggressively.
Despite receiving the best possible medical care, she passed away Friday afternoon from what is believed to be a renal condition.
Toki was an inspiration to all who had the fortune to hear her story and especially to the Lummi nation that considered her family. Those of us who have had the honor and privilege to spend time with her will forever remember her beautiful spirit.
Tokitae's passing comes potentially months before what would have, for organizations and advocates fighting for decades to see her home, marked a triumphant return back to the Salish Sea.
Irsay released a statement about Tokitae's passing on Friday evening.
The story of her potential repatriation captured hearts of people around the world.
On Aug. 8, 1970, aircraft that specialized in separating mother orcas from their babies descended on a superpod of 90 orca in Penn Cove off Whidbey Island, about 25 miles northwest of Seattle.
Six orcas were captured, and five were killed in the process of the capture, according to Washington State state archives. Four of the orcas that died were calves, and their bellies were slit and filled with rocks, according to the Orca Network.
The rest were sent to live out the remainder of their lives in marine parks across the United States
One survivor, the young orca Tokitae, renamed Lolita, was sent to the Seaquarium in Miami where she has spent the last five decades of her life in a shallow tank.
The Dolphin Center in Miami announced earlier in 2023 they entered into a "formal and binding" agreement with Friends of Lolita, a non-profit co-founded by environmentalist Pritam Singh, to return Lolita to an ocean sanctuary.
Colts' franchise owner and CEO Jim Irsay would have contributed to those efforts to return Lolita home.
Tokitae was around 57 years of age. She was the oldest orca in captivity.
This is a developing story. Check back with 13News for more updates.