This little section Ive decided to dedicate to the countless & sometimes simply insane encounters I’ve had with marine mammals over the years. I thought the best way to start it is with the most bad-arse apex predator of them all ~ The Bigg’s Orca or Transient Orca.
These animals are pretty damn awesome. Ive been blessed over the years by having many encounters with this ecotype of orca. Whether they were socializing, hunting and simply cruising from point a to point b - no two encounters are the same and you honestly have no idea what you are in for when you start watching.
Large male bull picking up his speed as he began the chase for his prey.
Side note - This ecotype of orca primarily prey on other marine mammals & you frequently encounter them along the west coast from California all the way up to Alaska. the population of this ecotype in the Pacific North West is around the 300 mark and growing steadily at about 4-5% a year. We have been reporting about 15-ish newborns a season of late, which is great.
NOW onto the hunt. These animals seem to always be on the hunt. Quietly and effectively scanning their surroundings for any potential prey. They appear and disappear so efficiently that I consider them to be ”Ninjas of the Orca world.”
This one morning I received rumoured reports of a pod of Bigg’s orca (named after the godfather of Orca researcher, Michael Bigg) close to Victoria heading for a small bank, which suggested to me possible hunting behaviour.
We instantly started cruising in that direction and I was bursting with excitement wondering what natural behaviour we might encounter with these apex predators. Before I knew it - a huge dorsal fin explodes from the surface & there they were. Beautiful, majestic, simply amazing. We cruised with them for a few minutes, keeping our distance, as it did appear they were in hunt mode.
RULE 1 - keep your distance especially when they are hunting. Orca use two main sensors when hunting; 1) Their eye sight, and 2) Echolocation, which is their bio-sonar. Hence, maintaining your distance and keeping quiet (engine wise) is vey important in order for these animals to feel comfortable in order for them to continue their natural behaviour whilst you are present/observing.
NOW onto the hunt. The entire pod picked up their speed and further a head by about a half a mile I could see smaller splashes and fins - porpoise. Porpoise are definitely on the menu for a pod of Bigg’s Orca. Let me mention the raw power that orca have... It is unbelievable!!! They have the ability to speed up to 30miles/hr in a matter of seconds and can launch themselves out of the water with complete ease. You truly don't quite understand this until you have seen them on a hunt.
Now, every population of Bigg's orca have different tactics of hunting, which also varies in regards to what species of marine mammal they are hunting. When it comes to porpoise the main tactic used is to swim underneath their prey and shoot upwards, smacking the prey into the air - essentially breaking their back in the process. Effectively, immobilizing their prey source and ending their hunt.
The female orca exploding from the surface chasing their prey.
I could see the smaller little splashes about half a mile away and I lifted my camera in anticipation of what I might capture... Then... BOOM! The female orca demonstrated just how powerful she was launching herself completely out of the water in attempt in using that exact hunting tactic. Fortunately, for the porpoise she missed that time around and you can see the little guy in the corner of one my pictures below.
second shot in the series of her breaching.
However, after a few moments of watching these apex predators demonstrate their immense power, it became clear that the chase was over. They will begin to group up and circle a certain area, log at the surface for a few breaths, followed by a big arch of their backs. What is happening here is that they are tearing the food up, sharing it amongst themselves whilst at the surface logging. However, as they do this, the carcass will sink to the depths and they need swim to the depths (hence the arching of their backs) to retrieve the food in order to continue eating & sharing with their family/pod.
Third shot - if you look closely to the left edge of the photo you can see a separate splash and a little dorsal fin, which is the prey she just missed... that time around.
So.... Awesome! I am a biologist and to me this is nature at its most raw beauty & power. I understand its not for everyone but that is the reality of the natural world - the balance of predator and prey.
Fourth shot from the breaching series.
A female arching in order to retrieve their food source below the surface.
As quickly as they started the hunt, they had finished and grouped up side by side and continued to cruise with one another off to another area. For myself and my guests it was time for us to head back to the dock with smiles on our faces and 100's of photos. Overall, to me that was a good morning.
The social structure of orca is fascinating and I will do a post on it in the near future.. Also, if you have any comments about posts you would like me to do on any marine mammals, how to interact with them, how to photograph them, etc. please leave a comment and I will do my best to get one up.
Thanks for reading and all the support, Steemit!!
All stories & photographs are of my own work unless noted under the picture in question.
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