A female killer whale died on the west coast of Vancouver Island after being stranded in shallow water over the weekend.

The Marine Education and Research Society was working to ensure that its calf can leave a lagoon near Zeballos.

The Society says it’s possible the whale was hunting and became stranded at low tide.

They also said in a social media post that there may have been something wrong with the mother's health.

Community members did what they could, dousing the mother with buckets of water Saturday as her calf swam nearby, but they could not save her.

Researchers confirm the mother was born in 2009 and her calf in 2022 - only about 1 year and 9 months old.

There are efforts now to try to ensure the calf leaves the lagoon and reunites with other family members.