Killer Whale Facts: 10 Things You Didn’t Know About Orca
Killer whales are apex predators, the largest dolphin on the planet, and capable of growing up to 10 metres long. These are all the common facts you may already know about orca, but what else there to learn about these charismatic animals? Dive a little deeper into the world of the killer whale, with 10 killer whale facts that you probably didn’t know.
Killer Whale Fact #1: There Are Many Unknown Ecotypes
Killer whales as a species have lots of separate ecotypes, which some scientists argue could be identified as separate subspecies of animal under the umbrella of killer whale, similar to Indian and African elephants. While this topic is still hotly debated, what is not debated is that there are likely a number of ecotypes of orca we are still yet to identify.
There are populations around the world, including off the coasts of Canada, the Caribbean and New Zealand, that could be members of their own ecotype, rather than belonging to a group already known to science.
Killer Whale Fact #2: Killer Whales Can Mimic Other Languages
Captive orca have been observed exhibiting some extremely strange and unnatural behaviours, but one quite surprising one is that they’ve been able to learn the languages of other species, including humans!
Killer whales have been able to make sounds close to human language, repeating back phrases including ‘hello’ and ‘bye-bye’ as well as trainer names.
Those orca kept in tanks with dolphins have also managed to incorporate the clicks and whistles of the dolphins' own language into their dialect, potentially allowing them some form of communication with the animals they share a tank with.
Killer Whale Fact #3: Orca Communities Have Unique & Complex Culture
Killer whale society is ancient. The species passes down their behaviours, languages and ethics from generation to generation
In orca culture, young are immediately brought into a complete community, where they are raised not only by the parent and close family but also the entire pod, often including dozens of animals. This means their identity and behaviour is influenced by their entire community from a very young age. As a result, orca have very tightly bound cultures reflective of their close-knit groups.
Killer whales are famously nurturing and supportive of their own, even going so far as to share food with weaker members of the pod -- such as elderly individuals -- who can no longer hunt or kill for themselves. They mourn their dead in sadness, and play when they are happy and curious, while also exhibiting unique behaviours based on their family history. For example, northern resident killer whales in Canada will rub their bellies on stones - why this is we’re not exactly sure, but it’s a behaviour unique to their culture.
Orca culture is an all-for-one, one-for-all dynamic where each member comes together to create a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. Their lives are devoted to each other, where even the lowest-ranking members of the societal hierarchy are valued and respected members of the community. It is this culture that allows them to be the dominant force in the ocean. Their ability to impart knowledge, share ideas and communicate complex strategies for living and hunting gives them a huge advantage over other animals.
There are very few species that have cultures anywhere near as robust and intricate as killer whales, and in terms of social culture, orca are arguably more interconnected and developed than most human societies.
Some even speculate that it is the orca’s culture that stops them from attacking humans. That orca understands the necessity of strong relationships between their society and that of people, which has been fostered for millennia by indigenous connections to communities in countries like Canada and New Zealand.
Killer Whale Fact #4: Killer Whales are Considered the Most Intelligent Creature in the Animal Kingdom
Forget chimpanzees, orca are often considered the most intelligent animals on the planet (besides humans -- and even then, it depends who you ask). Orca have some of the most complex social structures and communities of any animal. They’ve also got the second-largest brain in the animal kingdom, beaten out by the sperm whale. Their cerebral cortex is much more complicated than that of a human, which allows killer whales to pass down hunting techniques through generations. They can even recognise themselves in mirrors -- an incredibly rare skill.
Another factor to consider in the argument for the cognitive superiority of orca is in the variety of ecotypes.
While some claim orca ecotypes should be considered subspecies given the large differences in physical and behavioural traits, others suggest this simply is not the case, because when you look at the DNA structure of different ecotypes, they are almost 100% identical. So what is the difference in these animals?
Normally, when different ecotypes or subspecies evolve in the animal kingdom, it’s because specific mutations make the animal more suitable for a particular environment or lifestyle. In orca, this is not the case. Instead, ecotypes appear to have moved in different directions not because of survival of the fittest mechanisms promoted by changes in their DNA, but simple choice. Orca are smart enough and capable enough to change their behaviours based on how they’d like to live, not on how nature requires them to live to be successful, which leads to adaptive ecology.
Consider the Sherpas of Nepal, mountain-climbing experts who guide people around Everest and other dangerous low-oxygen peaks. Their bodies have adapted to the lack of oxygen in their environment, after they’d made the choice to live in this environment, and have since become more efficient in absorbing oxygen in the thin air. Their choice, their culture of mountaineering, caused physical adaptation. Orca ecotypes have experienced this same phenomenon.
As reported in the New Scientist, orca as the first non-human species to evolve through cultural shifts and conscious choice, rather than natural selection.
Killer Whale Fact #5: Orca Populations are Being Slowly Poisoned
Some orca populations are in real trouble, particularly those off coastal waters with high populations of humans -- Canada, USA and New Zealand are notable inclusions in this list.
The problem comes from toxic materials that end up in the ocean. Some of these materials were deposited many decades ago (PCBs) and have slowly degraded, eventually becoming part of the ecosystem.
While orca don’t eat these materials directly, they are absorbed by plant life and then consumed by smaller fish at the bottom of the food chain. This has a compounding effect. Small fish with moderate levels of toxic chemicals are eaten by bigger fish or sea mammals, that the orca then eat. It’s like a pyramid in reverse. The larger the animal, the more they actually end up consuming, and the more toxic materials end up in their system long term.
Orca, being at the top of the food chain, can have massive amounts of toxic chemicals in their bodies.
This is thought to be one of the causes of the declining numbers of coastal killer whales. The animals are incapable of breeding due to the chemicals in their bodies, and when they do manage to, the babies are often sickly, as these chemicals damage the immune system, leaving calves weak and regularly dying young.
Killer Whale Fact #6: (Some) Killer Whales are Endangered
Despite being the most deadly and successful predator in the ocean, some orca populations are endangered. Overfishing has caused dwindling food stocks for many coastal and ocean-going ecotypes, and the rates of toxic chemical ingestion are only making matters worse.
One of the most at-risk populations, southern resident killer whales roaming around the waters of British Columbia and Washington State, totals just 74 animals as of September 2020. The only resident UK population in the UK, found along the coast of Scotland, faces extinction due to their inability to breed as a result of toxic chemical ingestion.
Killer Whale Fact #7: Killer Whale Ecotypes Have Distinct Diets to Ensure Species Survival
Orca are known to have very distinct and specialised diets within their ecotypes. Some orca will only eat fish, while others sea lions or whales. There are even dietary restrictions within ecotypes. Bigg’s killer whale, for example, only eats ocean mammals, but there are communities within the ecotype that specialise in a specific species of mammal, rarely hunting outside of this animal.
The prevailing theory behind these incredibly specialised diets is that it ensures the survival of the killer whale species as a whole. Separating out the food chain stops different orca pods all targeting the same prey and eliminating stocks entirely. By dividing up available food, they diversify their harvest while leaving behind enough prey left to restock the food chain, ensuring food for everyone.
This kind of survival tactic is observed in no other species on Earth. It’s essentially sustainable farming, a far cry from the overfishing humans are notorious for.
Killer Whale Fact #8: Orca Can Suffer from Mental Health Disorders
Killer whales in captivity have been observed exhibiting behaviours symptomatic of depression and PTSD; patterns only seen in a few species of animal. Hugo, a captive orca, actually died by suicide after bashing his head against the wall of his tank so many times he caused internal bleeding in his brain.
While most of these mental health struggles have been observed in captivity, we’ve also seen orca carrying the dead young around for days on end, signs of despair and extreme grief.
Captivity is a notoriously cruel practice. Learn how to help end whale and dolphin captivity.
Killer Whale Fact #9: Killer Whales Will Change Their Behaviour to Fit Individual Personalities
Luna, the famous orca of Nootka Sound in Canada, was known -- somewhat notoriously -- for his interaction with people. Of his many quirks, researchers and wardens tasked with his care noticed his affinity for understanding individual characteristics and personality traits. Those he identified as being relaxed or fun-loving, he’d be boisterous and cheeky with, blowing raspberries, blasting them with droplets from his blowhole and generally being mischievous. For those that were more straight-laced, stern and stoic, he’d take a much more genial approach; interacting in a calmer and more sedate way.
Even as observers from the water peering out at people on boats, orca are capable of discerning appropriate social interaction across the species barrier.
Killer Whale Fact #10: Killer Whales Have a Range of Distinct Hunting Strategies, Often Unique to Their Family Group
Key to any culture is education, the passing of knowledge from one generation to the next. In killer whale society, where 60% of their time is spent hunting, passing on methods of killing prey is often priority number one when it comes to sharing information.
Just as different human cultures pass on different teachings to their young, allowing peoples to live on and thrive, such as fishermen on the Mekong teaching their children to fish, or Spartans of Ancient Greece teaching their children to fight, orca pass on what they know to their offspring, which over time has caused some staggeringly effective hunting techniques to develop.
Orca have been observed making artificial waves to knock seals off ice flows, they’ve been spotted beaching themselves to catch sea lions, following to tide into shallow nursery coves, and using their tails to stun prey. Killer whales have even been recorded using hunting strategies to kill blue whales, with each member of the pod integrated into their own role, slowly bringing down the largest animal to have ever lived -- killer whale hunts of blue whales often last five hours or more. Perhaps even more impressive, killer whales have been observed hunting and killing great white sharks with extreme efficiency.
Such distinct and calculated methods of hunting, carefully devised and improved with practice over years, make orca the most effective predator on the planet. These are not generalised hunting patterns that come instinctually to animals, like a diving eagle or a sprinting cheetah; these are highly-specialised and specific tactics that are taught as though imparted in a classroom.
Other animals, like lions, work together to hunt. However, their strategies are far more simplistic. It’s not just the fact orca work together, and pass on their hunting skills, that makes them such deadly killers, but just how effective their hunting strategies are, and how well their young learn to not only mimic but also advance upon techniques. Improving success rates.
Enter the world of the orca. Read our guides to swimming with killer whales, and the best places to see wild killer whales.
