Nalani

Nalani is a female orca who currently resides at SeaWorld Orlando, where she was born on September 18, 2006. Her parents are Katina and Taku (who is, due to inbreeding, also her brother). She is Katina's sixth calf, and was Taku's second. She is a very loving and curious youngster, but was very dependent on her mother in the first few years. She is learning fast, as she is used in shows regularly alongside Trua, Malia, Kayla, and Katina. An easy way to identify Nalani is how plump she is. She's grown to be bulky, like her mom, has round eyepatches, her dorsal fin has started to lean to her left side, and is the longest baby at Sea World Orlando.

Nalani was the first inbred orca to be born and survive. Her half sister Unna gave birth to a stillborn calf in April 2006, who may or may not have been inbred. The father has never been announced. Also, an inbred calf was miscarried in Canada in 2004. Nalani has shown no signs of being inbred. She physically acts and looks like any other orca should. She is very playful and smart and shows no signs of falling behind. She performs regularly in shows and knows many advanced behaviors.

Nalani had been learning waterworks before they were stopped in 2010. She had just started performing them in shows doing beginner behaviors. She is a very energetic and athletic whale. She picks up on new behaviors rather well.

Nalani was very close to her mom the first couple years of her life. When her half brother Makaio was born, she at first seemed jealous. As she spent more time with him, they became much closer. She can be seen with any member of the pod, but is most often with Katina and Malia. Katina has also let Nalani come into more of a dominant position in recent years.