For the first time ever, a killer whale, also known as an orca, has been seen consuming a great white shark all by itself. The entire process took just two minutes.
Dr. Alison Towner from Rhodes University led a research team that uncovered extraordinary behavior among killer whales off the coast of Mossel Bay, South Africa. Their findings, published in the African Journal of Marine Science, shed new light on the hunting prowess of orcas.
This latest discovery builds on previous research by Dr. Towner’s team, who revealed in 2022 that orcas were hunting and killing great white sharks off the South African coast since 2017. Their tactics have even disrupted the natural gathering spots of these sharks.
Orcas usually hunt together, especially when going after big prey like sea lions, seals, and even other whales. They team up to surround the prey and attack it using their smarts and strength. While they can hunt alone for smaller prey, it’s rare to see them do this with such a big predator like the great white shark.
Dr. Towner, who has been studying great white sharks for 17 years, explains that orcas usually go for the liver of white sharks because it’s rich in fat. They call this a specialized way of eating. But what surprised them was seeing one orca, named Starboard because of his bent fin, take down and eat a young 8.2-foot white shark all by himself in just two minutes. They even saw him carrying the shark’s liver past a boat.
“This sighting showed us that at least one killer whale can hunt alone, which goes against what we usually know about how they hunt together.
“These new discoveries about how killer whales hunt are important because they help us understand more about how they fit into the marine world and how they interact with other animals.
“In this event, we saw that at least two white sharks were killed. We found another shark nearby, measuring 11.6 feet long.”
“The research makes us think about how killer whale hunting affects shark numbers in South Africa,” says Dr. Towner. “When killer whales are around, other shark species might move away, which could change how the marine ecosystem works.”
Understanding how killer whales hunt is really important for protecting the oceans. The researchers say that events like this show why we need to be flexible with conservation efforts and keep a close eye on how things are changing in the environment.
Dr. Simon Elwen, who works at Sea Search Research & Conservation and the Department of BotZoo at the University of Stellenbosch, knows a lot about whales, including their behavior and how to protect them.
Dr. Towner’s team’s discovery is really important. He says, “These observations add more to the story of these two killer whales and how clever they are. Killer whales are smart predators and can quickly learn new hunting tricks, so it’s important to study their behavior in South Africa.”
The people on land and tourists on boats, along with other organizations, played a big part in getting this important information and footage of the predator events.
This event shows how citizen science, where regular people help scientists, can be really helpful. Esther Jacobs, from Keep Fin Alive, talks about seeing the predator event. She says, “When we got to Seal Island in Mossel Bay, we could smell the oil from the shark’s liver and see a shiny patch on the water, which showed there had been a recent kill. We saw Port and Starboard near the island, but they stayed apart.”
“At first, seeing the white shark’s fin got us all excited, but then we felt sad as Starboard came closer. It was really powerful to see Starboard quickly catch my favorite shark species,” said one of the co-authors, Dr. Primo Micarelli, from the Shark Studies Centre and Siena University. “I’ve been visiting South Africa for over twenty years, and I’ve seen how these killer whales affect the local white shark population. Watching Starboard carry the white shark’s liver past our boat is something I’ll never forget.”
“Even though I admire these predators, I worry more about how they affect the balance of coastal marine life,” said Dr. Towner.
In conclusion, Dr. Towner emphasizes that the new discoveries about killer whales give us more understanding of how flexible mammal predators adapt and change in their environment.
“The fact that these killer whales hunt sharks might be connected to bigger changes in the ecosystem. Things are happening fast, and it’s hard for science to keep up, so we’re publishing these quick updates to share our findings,” she said.
