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GRAPHIC WARNING: Newborn orca whale found dead in Ocean Shores

OCEAN SHORES, Wash. — A 7-foot-8-inch-long female orca calf washed up dead late Saturday on a beach in Ocean Shores.

The whale likely died due to some kind of birth-related trauma, according to the Cascadia Research Institute.

Scientists took a genetic sample from the calf, to determine if she was a part of the highly endangered Southern Resident killer whale population.

"The condition of the whale and its age made it too difficult for scientists to identify the whale's origin by sight alone," Orca Network said in a post on its Facebook Page.

KIRO 7 will continue to update this story as more information becomes available.

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