Orcas in the Gulf of California are filmed using a coordinated ramming technique in which one whale holds a giant sharp-tail sunfish in its jaws while another strikes it at high speed. Multiple accounts describe the prey bursting into thousands of fragments when the fish carcass is smashed. Researchers quoted across the reports say the fish had already been killed, and that the behaviour could serve more than one purpose. One line of explanation is food processing: breaking large carcasses into smaller pieces may help orcas, including younger whales, feed more easily and possibly digest the food. Another interpretation is play or entertainment, with some researchers suggesting the high-impact behaviour functions as a form of gory play rather than purely hunting. The outlets agree that the observations represent a previously documented behaviour and that scientists are still evaluating whether the primary driver is feeding efficiency for juveniles, play, or both.
Orcas observed ramming sunfish carcasses in coordinated “explosion” behaviour
Orcas in the Gulf of California are filmed using a coordinated ramming technique in which one whale holds a giant sharp-tail sunfish in its jaws while another strikes it at high speed. Multiple accoun...
- Orcas in the Gulf of California are filmed ramming giant sharp-tail sunfish, causing the carcasses to break into thousands of pieces.
- The behaviour is coordinated: at least one whale holds the fish while another whale rams it at high speed.
- Researchers say the sunfish had been killed before the ramming occurs.
- Scientists suggest the behaviour may help younger orcas feed more easily by portioning large prey.
- Researchers also consider play or entertainment as another possible reason for the high-impact “explosion” behaviour.
Researchers have documented a previously unknown hunting behaviour in orcas in the Gulf of California. The animals were filmed working together to hold and ram giant sharp-tail sunfish until the carcass broke into thousands of pieces. Scientists believe the behaviour may help younger orcas feed more easily or could simply be play.
1 hour agoBehaviour may also be strategy to portion food for juveniles, researchers say
5 hours agoScientists believe sunfish-smashing behaviour could be form of entertainment or to help younger whales feedOrcas have been observed ramming into giant fish so hard that the prey explode, possibly as a form of gory entertainment.On several occasions, orcas were observed to hold sunfish in their jaws while a second whale smashed into the target at high speed, causing it to break into thousands of pieces. Since the fish had already been killed, scientists suggested the behaviour may represent a form of play. Continue reading...
5 hours agoThe ramming behavior might help younger orcas more easily digest their food, while also allowing other orcas to have a little fun, researchers say.
5 hours ago
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