A boat full of stunned whale watchers witnessed the more-than-three-hour attack on the blue whale on March 16 in an area known at Bremer Bay Canyon, wrote marine biologist Kristy Brown in a blog post for the whale watching boat operator Naturaliste Charters. A post shared by Naturaliste Charters naturalistecharters. The roughly foot-long victim may have been a juvenile blue whale Balaenoptera musculus or an adult pygmy blue whale Balaenoptera musculus brevicauda , since both are known to pass through the area where the attack took place and are similar in size and appearance, Brown tells Laura Geggel of Live Science via email.
Whatever the species, the blue whale dwarfed its attackers. Male orcas can reach a maximum size of roughly 30 feet in length and have also been known to attack and kill gray whales, humpback whales, sea lions and even great white sharks. Once the shark is flipped over, it becomes shocked and unable to attack, allowing the killer whales to attack their prey without the fear of being attacked themselves.
When hunting fast and agile prey such as dolphins, killer whales will work collectively to tire the dolphin out until they cannot swim away fast enough to escape. They have even been spotted sneaking up to the beach or an iceberg using stealth and then quickly leaping out of the water and onto the sand or iceberg to surprise their prey and grab onto it before it can react and escape.
While other animals do not hunt these marine mammals, killer whales are well aware that some of their prey may try to defend themselves, which could lead to permanent injuries such as injured fins or the loss of an eye. Because of this fact, killer whales are very cautious and methodical about their hunting methods to maximize their success rates while ensuring their safety. Part of what makes killer whales such successful hunters and defenders are the closely-knit packs or groups they travel in and rarely separate from.
Killer whales are very family-oriented, and when one killer whale successfully captures its prey, the food is often split between family members and close friends. These close bonds allow killer whales to work together when foraging and protect one another from potential threats from sharks and other marine animals that may put up a good fight when being attacked.
For example, female sperm whales occasionally face threats from hungry killer whales looking to steal their small children away for food. To protect their children, the female sperm whales may form a circle around the child, using their flukes to hit any potential predators trying to enter the circle. It has been said that the amount of power that their flukes can generate is enough to injure a lurking predator seriously and may even be lethal. Sharks are also likely to put up a fight when being attacked and, if possible, may attempt to latch onto a predator and trash back and forth to wound and injure the predator.
With that said, only a small percentage of shark species are known to hunt large prey and form a proper defense. However, they are not invincible and can become harmed, ill, or killed by other threats such as humans, parasites, and disease.
All rights reserved. Orcas are highly intelligent, social mammals. Common Name: Orca Killer Whale. Scientific Name: Orcinus orca. Type: Mammals. Diet: Carnivore. Group Name: Pod. Size: 23 to 32 feet.
Weight: Up to 6 tons. Size relative to a bus:. Data deficient. Least Concern Extinct. Current Population Trend: Unknown. This photo was submitted to Your Shot, our photo community on Instagram. Follow us on Instagram at natgeoyourshot or visit us at natgeo. Share Tweet Email. Go Further. Animals Wild Cities This wild African cat has adapted to life in a big city.
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