The killer whale population at Puget Sound off Washington State is declining at an alarming rate.

A survey by the Center for Whale Research revealed that in 2011, there were 88 whales in the area. Now, 78 whales are left in the three pods named J, K and L.

The number of whales is the lowest in the last 29 years. No new calves have been born since 2012 and two adult whales are thought to have died this year.

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The two missing and presumably dead killer whales are a 37-year-old female named Lulu and a 13-year-old male named Indigo. Both whales belong to the L pod.

Ken Balcomb, a researcher at the center, has been observing the whales since 1976. Balcomb said the orcas used to socialize in large groups during the summer months in the San Juan islands.

This has changed in the past few years, with whales dividing into smaller groups and rarely socializing like they used to.

"What we're seeing with this weird association pattern is two or three members of one pod with two or three from another pod. It's a fragmentation of the formal social structure. They often stay miles and miles apart and don't interact," said Balcomb.

Balcomb believes the main reason for the change is the lack of food.

Although a killer whale eats other various kinds of fish, its primary prey is the Chinook Salmon that swims through the San Juan islands on its way back to the Fraser River in Canada.

The salmon population is in decline due to man's heavy reliance on harvest, hatcheries and hydropower.

Despite federal and state officials attempting to reverse the decline, there has been no definite solution to the decline of the Chinook salmon.

Transient whales or whales that pass through the area are on the rise.

Balcomb said females that have the ability to reproduce usually have a calf every five years.

If the pattern were to continue, "we could have eight babies next year. He added, however, that "the chances of that happening are pretty slim."