* . *
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact
Friday, October 3, 2025
Earth-News
  • Home
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    Taylor Swift Releases New Album The Life of a Showgirl : Listen and Read the Full Credits – Yahoo

    Taylor Swift Releases New Album The Life of a Showgirl : Listen and Read the Full Credits – Yahoo

    Toni Braxton Is Turning Her Biggest Hits Into Lifetime Movies – Yahoo

    Toni Braxton Is Turning Her Biggest Hits Into Lifetime Movies – Yahoo

    Major airline to offer new in-flight entertainment options for passengers – PennLive.com

    Major airline to offer new in-flight entertainment options for passengers – PennLive.com

    Penn State-Themed Restaurant and Entertainment Spot Happy Valley Live Set to Open in State College – StateCollege.com

    Penn State-Themed Restaurant and Entertainment Spot Happy Valley Live Set to Open in State College – StateCollege.com

    The Police Made Chart History With This 1979 Hit Nearly 50 Years Ago – Yahoo

    How The Police Changed Music Forever with Their Iconic 1979 Hit Nearly 50 Years Ago

    Good Deed Entertainment Acquires Worldwide Rights To Liza Mandelup’s Documentary ‘Caterpillar’ – Deadline

    Good Deed Entertainment Lands Global Rights to Liza Mandelup’s Captivating Documentary ‘Caterpillar

  • General
  • Health
  • News

    Cracking the Code: Why China’s Economic Challenges Aren’t Shaking Markets, Unlike America’s” – Bloomberg

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Science
  • Sports
  • Technology
    Technology Is Becoming More Important Than Humans In CX – No Jitter

    Technology Is Becoming More Important Than Humans In CX – No Jitter

    A Tech Expo Shows What China Can Make, but Not Who’ll Buy It All – The New York Times

    Inside China’s Tech Expo: Cutting-Edge Innovations Face Uncertain Demand

    Steampunk Metal Oval Technology Sense Sunglasses Personality Handmade Chain Multicolor Sunglasses UV400 – The San Joaquin Valley Sun

    Steampunk Metal Oval Sunglasses with Handmade Multicolor Chain – Bold UV400 Protection and Unique Style

    STELLA Automotive AI Appoints Fred Seidelman as Chief Technology Officer – Yahoo Finance

    STELLA Automotive AI Appoints Fred Seidelman as New Chief Technology Officer

    Saving Energy and Money with Smart Technology – Terms of Service with Clare Duffy – Podcast on CNN Podcasts – CNN

    Saving Energy and Money with Smart Technology – Terms of Service with Clare Duffy – Podcast on CNN Podcasts – CNN

    Four Strategic Signals Technology Leaders Are Tuning In To – SPONSOR CONTENT FROM ARM – Harvard Business Review

    Four Essential Strategic Signals Every Technology Leader Should Watch

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    Taylor Swift Releases New Album The Life of a Showgirl : Listen and Read the Full Credits – Yahoo

    Taylor Swift Releases New Album The Life of a Showgirl : Listen and Read the Full Credits – Yahoo

    Toni Braxton Is Turning Her Biggest Hits Into Lifetime Movies – Yahoo

    Toni Braxton Is Turning Her Biggest Hits Into Lifetime Movies – Yahoo

    Major airline to offer new in-flight entertainment options for passengers – PennLive.com

    Major airline to offer new in-flight entertainment options for passengers – PennLive.com

    Penn State-Themed Restaurant and Entertainment Spot Happy Valley Live Set to Open in State College – StateCollege.com

    Penn State-Themed Restaurant and Entertainment Spot Happy Valley Live Set to Open in State College – StateCollege.com

    The Police Made Chart History With This 1979 Hit Nearly 50 Years Ago – Yahoo

    How The Police Changed Music Forever with Their Iconic 1979 Hit Nearly 50 Years Ago

    Good Deed Entertainment Acquires Worldwide Rights To Liza Mandelup’s Documentary ‘Caterpillar’ – Deadline

    Good Deed Entertainment Lands Global Rights to Liza Mandelup’s Captivating Documentary ‘Caterpillar

  • General
  • Health
  • News

    Cracking the Code: Why China’s Economic Challenges Aren’t Shaking Markets, Unlike America’s” – Bloomberg

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Science
  • Sports
  • Technology
    Technology Is Becoming More Important Than Humans In CX – No Jitter

    Technology Is Becoming More Important Than Humans In CX – No Jitter

    A Tech Expo Shows What China Can Make, but Not Who’ll Buy It All – The New York Times

    Inside China’s Tech Expo: Cutting-Edge Innovations Face Uncertain Demand

    Steampunk Metal Oval Technology Sense Sunglasses Personality Handmade Chain Multicolor Sunglasses UV400 – The San Joaquin Valley Sun

    Steampunk Metal Oval Sunglasses with Handmade Multicolor Chain – Bold UV400 Protection and Unique Style

    STELLA Automotive AI Appoints Fred Seidelman as Chief Technology Officer – Yahoo Finance

    STELLA Automotive AI Appoints Fred Seidelman as New Chief Technology Officer

    Saving Energy and Money with Smart Technology – Terms of Service with Clare Duffy – Podcast on CNN Podcasts – CNN

    Saving Energy and Money with Smart Technology – Terms of Service with Clare Duffy – Podcast on CNN Podcasts – CNN

    Four Strategic Signals Technology Leaders Are Tuning In To – SPONSOR CONTENT FROM ARM – Harvard Business Review

    Four Essential Strategic Signals Every Technology Leader Should Watch

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
No Result
View All Result
Earth-News
No Result
View All Result
Home Science

5 ways orcas are surprising scientists

May 3, 2024
in Science
5 ways orcas are surprising scientists
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Orcas continue to dominate headlines, and for good reason—the ultimate ocean predators keep finding ways to surprise us.

These versatile dolphins (yes, they’re not whales) are likely the most widely distributed vertebrate on the planet, living from the polar regions south to the Equator. Orcas have very diverse diets, feasting on fish, penguins, and marine mammals such as seals, sea lions, and even whales—and they’ve developed ingenious methods for procuring their prey.

Some Antarctic orcas work as a team to create waves that knock seals off floating ice sheets. Others have figured out how to extract livers from great white sharks—sometimes solo, and in as little as a few minutes.

Orcas are fascinating to watch, and as coastal creatures, it’s possible to see the animals on tourist cruises worldwide, which Robert Pitman, a marine ecologist at Oregon State University’s Marine Mammal Institute, suggests everyone do in their lifetime.

“This is the biggest apex predator we have on the planet today,” Pitman told National Geographic. “We haven’t seen anything like it since dinosaurs roamed the Earth.”

“The open ocean doesn’t support a lot of large predators; it’s often described as a giant desert, so we weren’t expecting to find so many different animals,” says study leader Josh McInnes, a master’s candidate at the University of British Columbia’s Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries. His team plans to continue their research.

2. These orcas control the waves to hunt

In one region of Antarctica, about a hundred orcas have mastered a hunting technique called wave washing. The secret: working together to turn water into a weapon.

The orcas, having identified their target, form a battle line and start charging toward the seal atop an ice floe. Just before reaching it, they rotate to their sides in a single, synchronized motion and plunge underwater.

The momentum creates a wave so powerful that it floods the ice sheet, cracking the surface and whipping the flailing seal around. Slowly and methodically, they repeat the charge. The ice fractures more.

On the third charge, the wave sends the seal flying into the sea. It scrambles to climb onto a piece of ice, then disappears from view, grabbed from below by a killer whale.

3. Single orca kills great white shark

An orca already famous for surgically extracting shark livers has a new trick up its sleeve: Killing one of nature’s most deadly predators all by himself.

For the first time ever, scientists documented an orca taking down a great white shark solo in March 2024.

The new footage, taken in June 2023 in Mossel Bay, shows an orca known as Starboard killing a juvenile eight-foot-long great white shark and removing its liver—all in under two minutes. The orca then parades past the videographer’s boat with the bloody liver in its mouth. Starboard typically hunts alongside his relative, Port, near Cape Town, South Africa, but this time he was on his own.

Orcas are known for working together to hunt even the largest prey, making Starboard’s behavior a marked departure, says Alison Towner, a shark expert at Rhodes University who led a study in the journal African Journal of Marine Science. 

“Starboard’s predation strategy here really surprised us,” says Towner. “Previously, we observed him hunting near others, noting teamwork in securing white sharks and accessing their livers.” (See 13 of Nat Geo’s favorite photos of orcas.)

4. Fish-eating orcas kill porpoises—for fun?

In 2005, Deborah Giles saw something she’ll never forget—a dead porpoise, riding the snouts of a pod of orcas off Washington State.

“What on Earth is happening?” wondered Giles, the science and research director for the nonprofit Wild Orca, based in Friday Harbor. “It didn’t make any sense.”

Scientists first recorded this behavior in southern resident killer whales in 1962, and since then, eyewitnesses have observed more than 70 such incidents, peaking in 2005 at 10.

Often working as a team, these fish-eating orcas push porpoises with their snouts, hold them in their mouths, and carry them above the water. Sometimes orcas toy with their victims, allowing them to escape before recapturing them. Some are more aggressive, tossing the porpoise, slapping it with their flukes, or shaking it in their mouths. Most of the time, the porpoises presumably die following such rough treatment.

This orca behavior mystifies scientists—but they think the intelligent predators are likely playing.

Speaking of having fun…

5. Orcas are working together to sink boats

A population of orcas off the Iberian Peninsula has been gaining attention over the last three years—and causing angst among sailors—by attacking and even sinking boats in the area.

The first recorded attack occurred in the Strait of Gibraltar in May 2020, with dozens of cases recorded since then. Most of the incidents are remarkably consistent, generally involving a small group of whales attacking the rudders of small sailboats before breaking off and swimming away.

In June and November 2022, a pair of attacks caused two boats to sink; in May 2023, a badly damaged boat sank while it was being towed to shore.

“It’s just as reasonable to suggest that they’re doing this because they can, because it’s fun,” says Hanne Strager, co-founder of the Andenes Whale Center in Norway and author of the recently published book The Killer Whale Journals.

That’s why it’s tempting to anthropomorphize orcas—and root for them to win against humanity.

>>> Read full article>>>
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source : National Geographic – https://www.nationalgeographic.com/premium/article/orcas-hunting-sharks-killer-whales

Tags: Orcassciencesurprising
Previous Post

A short history of tennis skirts

Next Post

Why ovaries are so crucial to women’s health and longevity

Top-12 NFL running games: Which teams are helping our RBs score fantasy football points this season? – Yahoo Sports

Top-12 NFL running games: Which teams are helping our RBs score fantasy football points this season? – Yahoo Sports

October 3, 2025
FIRST LOOK: Official match ball of FIFA World Cup ‘26 – Yahoo Sports

Get an Exclusive First Look at the Official Match Ball of FIFA World Cup 2026!

October 3, 2025
Arts economy grows, but funding lags on Long Island – Long Island Business News

Long Island’s Arts Economy Thrives Despite Ongoing Funding Challenges

October 3, 2025
Taylor Swift Releases New Album The Life of a Showgirl : Listen and Read the Full Credits – Yahoo

Taylor Swift Releases New Album The Life of a Showgirl : Listen and Read the Full Credits – Yahoo

October 3, 2025
HIV pioneer Dr. William Valenti retires, leaving lasting impact on health community – 13wham.com

HIV Pioneer Dr. William Valenti Retires, Leaving an Enduring Impact on the Health Community

October 3, 2025
As the shutdown drags on, the threat of permanent cuts is mired in politics – NPR

As the Shutdown Continues, the Risk of Lasting Cuts Grows Amid Political Stalemate

October 3, 2025
West Seattle Ecology Fair 2025, report #2: Heat waves aren’t just a source of discomfort – West Seattle Blog…

West Seattle Ecology Fair 2025: Uncovering the Hidden Impacts of Heat Waves Beyond Our Comfort

October 3, 2025
Roam The Huntington after dark at an atmospheric ‘Strange Science’ night – NBC Los Angeles

Uncover the Secrets of The Huntington After Dark at the Enchanting ‘Strange Science’ Night

October 3, 2025
Viral apple cider vinegar weight loss study retracted for flawed science – ScienceDaily

Viral apple cider vinegar weight loss study retracted for flawed science – ScienceDaily

October 3, 2025
A love letter to the garden – The Inquirer and Mirror

A Heartfelt Ode to the Garden: Celebrating Nature’s Timeless Beauty

October 3, 2025

Categories

Archives

October 2025
M T W T F S S
 12345
6789101112
13141516171819
20212223242526
2728293031  
« Sep    
Earth-News.info

The Earth News is an independent English-language daily published Website from all around the World News

Browse by Category

  • Business (20,132)
  • Ecology (848)
  • Economy (869)
  • Entertainment (21,743)
  • General (17,381)
  • Health (9,912)
  • Lifestyle (881)
  • News (22,149)
  • People (870)
  • Politics (880)
  • Science (16,079)
  • Sports (21,370)
  • Technology (15,852)
  • World (852)

Recent News

Top-12 NFL running games: Which teams are helping our RBs score fantasy football points this season? – Yahoo Sports

Top-12 NFL running games: Which teams are helping our RBs score fantasy football points this season? – Yahoo Sports

October 3, 2025
FIRST LOOK: Official match ball of FIFA World Cup ‘26 – Yahoo Sports

Get an Exclusive First Look at the Official Match Ball of FIFA World Cup 2026!

October 3, 2025
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact

© 2023 earth-news.info

No Result
View All Result

© 2023 earth-news.info

No Result
View All Result

© 2023 earth-news.info

Go to mobile version