A rare video was captured this week by a whale-watching trip off the coast of San Diego, showing an orca teaching its baby how to hunt by headbutting a dolphin and flipping it over multiple times in the air.
Wildlife filmmaker Domenic Biagini, who shot the footage, described the scene, saying: “The killer whale catches the dolphin, but when the dolphin slows down, he releases it after it is subdued and brings the baby killer whale with him to catch it himself.” “Seeing that level of communication and understanding was like watching a family.”
Biagini owns Gone Whale Watching, one of several companies that spotted a pod of six orcas off the coast of San Diego on Monday. He said the orca hunt took about 30 minutes, which was much longer than the average orca hunt because he was teaching orca pups.
According to marine biologist Alisa Shulman Janiger, killer whales are among the ocean’s apex predators and are known to incorporate their large size and speed into their hunting strategies. She added that it is common for orcas to slow down the prey and show the children how to hunt.
Shulman-Janiger explained that the killer whales in the video are so young that their eye patches are yellow instead of white, a color that eventually fades as they get older.
Where do whales come from?
Shulman Janiger said the whale in Biagini’s footage is an eastern tropical Pacific orca, which typically lives in waters off Mexico and Central America. They are rarely seen in the relatively warm, calm waters of Southern California.
Speaking about the hunting behavior, Biagini said, “We try to explain to our guests that while what whales do to dolphins can sometimes be very gruesome, this is normal and healthy.”
Biagini also mentioned that after Monday’s hunt, the killer whales approached the boat to see what was going on and began to poke their heads out of the water, which is a behavior known as spy hopping.
‘Remember us at your Thanksgiving feast’: Killer whales celebrate the hunt
Biagini said the killer whales often celebrate after a successful hunt and zigzag back and forth through the water. He compared it to the feeling of happiness and smiling after a Thanksgiving meal.
Additionally, Biagini expressed concern about the increasing number of boats getting close to orcas to film social media videos, urging people to film animals in the most ethical way.
Danger of flocking to whale watching
Biagini also raised concerns about the number of boats surrounding the pod of killer whales, stating that too many boats with inexperienced operators could interfere with their hunting behavior or lead to collisions.
In a video he shot, a man driving a boat by himself abandons the wheel to lean out onto the deck to record the video.
Overall, Biagini emphasized the importance of being stewards of animals and approaching them in an ethical way.
Source: www.nbcnews.com
