Welp, it seems like the orcas – also known as “killer whales” – are back to attacking boats out on the ocean.
Despite having the name killer whale, there is not a single case of an orca in the wild killing or even hunting humans. The whales are absolute apex predators and have been known to prey on whale species that are even bigger than them. Killer whales, which are technically the largest member of the dolphin family, can weigh up to 11 tons and grow to be over 30 feet in length, making them able to really pick and choose any food that they want.
With their size, it would not be a problem whatsoever to occasionally snack on a human or human-guided vessel, but they tend to keep to themselves when it comes to interacting with the human race. Orcas are the only known predator of the great white shark, and when they aren’t chowing down on larger whales and great whites, they mostly have a diet of fish, seals, and sea birds.
However, it certainly seems like this group of orcas had it out for this sailboat that was sailing off the coast of Spain. Those on board believe that a pod of 3 to 4 orcas targeted their boat, and say that the wild sea creatures’ attack lasted over eight minutes.
Gage Butler shared the heart-pounding video online, and said the experience was both terrifying and fascinating, since he loves killer whales:
“Still in awe that this happened yesterday! Orcas are my favorite animal, it’s always been my dream to see them up close but I didn’t think it would happen this way… This was such an amazing, scary and fascinating experience.
I was in a sailing regatta as a part of team Seika racing. We were moving the sailboat from San Vicente, Spain on the Iberian Coast to another marina when the boat was ATTACKED BY A POD OF ORCAS. 3 to 4 orcas attacked the sailboat, we lost half of the rudder and they continued to attack for about 8 minutes!”
Oh so the orcas took out half of the boat’s rudder? Yeah, you can’t convince me that these killer whales weren’t trying to change that statistic about “no human deaths ever caused by an orca.”
The member of the sailing regatta went on to say that he suspected the killer whales were younger, and thus were very intrigued by the sailboat. Butler and the others aboard the sailboat truly thought the hull may have been damaged during the attack, but they were relieved to find out that the only damage the orcas caused was to the rudder:
“These Orcas looked smaller than ones I’ve seen at SeaWorld so I’m pretty sure they were juveniles just playing with the boat, which ended up breaking the rudder. It was so cool to see how smart these animals are and how they play and hunt as a pod.
But at the same time my adrenaline was pumping while we were investigating the boat to see if we had any leaks in the hull. Luckily everyone was safe and there was no major damage to the boat. This was truly a once in a lifetime experience.”
Nothing like calling a close call with a death a once in a lifetime experience.
Of course this is nothing new… especially off the coast of Spain.
Over the past few years, 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.
Good Morning America also spoke 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.
