What the heck is going on between orcas and boats?
Over the past few weeks, there has been a lot of noise around pods of orcas attacking various ships off the coast of Spain and Portugal.
This yacht was rammed for over an hour and this sailor was left stranded when an orca took off one of the boat’s rudders, and now more video has come out from the region.
According to The U.S. Sun, this is not a new problem, as a whale named White Gladis has been attacking boats since 2020 and now appears to be teaching other whales to do the same.
During this time, there has been a staggering increase in number of whale attack incidents, with authorities restricting access to the tip of Spain due to 29 reported attacks in just 4 months.
While the sheer size of these creatures alone is enough to cause damage through brunt force, it appears the animals are getting smarter, as this latest video shows an orca going straight for the boat’s rudders, which incapacitates that boats.
In this case, both of the craft’s rudders were lost.
Good Morning America also spoke on this story, with an expert saying that some of the boats that have been attacked by the whales have sank completely, and also here in America we are seeing some unusual behavior by orcas, swimming through waters where they are not normally found.
So why did all of this start?
Some scientists believe that White Gladis may have suffered a “critical moment of agony”, perhaps getting tangled in a fishing line or struck by a collision with a vessel, which not only enraged her but that entire group in the area.
Whales are some of the most intelligent creatures on the planet with known methods of communication, so it seems entirely possible this is a targeted attack on what they believe to be a threat.
What an insane thing unfolding in the Strait of Gibraltar.
