Hunting Techniques of Orcas

Welcome back Orca-holics to a new blog of ours! This time it’s all about the different hunting techniques orcas display all around the globe. We’re going to show you some really interesting but also brutal techniques these apex predators came up with in order to ensure the survival of their family!  

Orca attacking a bottlenose dolphin. Photo credit: REX SHUTTERSHOCK,

Along with descriptions we try something a bit different to the usual blogs. We will show some videos so you can also see the techniques in action! Please be aware some of the videos are very graphic. 

North Atlantic Type 1 killer whales prey upon herring. To catch them, they produce unique frequency calls ( i-36, you know it from our second blog), which are in the best hearing range of the herring to scare them. This makes them move close together into a “baitball”. The orcas swim around them showing them their white bellies, so they stay put. Then the attack occurs, they swim to the baitball, then make a u-turn and hit the herring with their massive flukes. This stuns the fish or kills it immediately. All the ‘wolves of the sea’ must do then is collect them one by one until they´ve had their fill.

As with all ecotypes of orcas and all different hunting techniques, the adults teach their young ones this specific technique and how to kill afterwards. They also let them try it themselves, once they think they´re ready. As you already know from a previous blog, their limbic system is more advanced and developed than ours, so of course they share their meal together and are happy that they could not only fill their own bellies, but also the bellies of their loved ones.  

Eastern tropical pacific killer whales are known to hunt dolphins and display a spectacular way of doing so. They catapult themselves over 6 m out of the water, whilst hitting the dolphin with their body. The dolphin gets either stunned, injured or tired, which makes it easier for the pod to make the kill. Since the dolphins are very agile and fast, orcas need to work together as a coordinated unit.  

Video snapshot of Orcas hunting dolphins. Video credit: Domenic Biagini.

Pack Ice killer whales are famous for their wave washing technique. Once they have found prey on an ice shelf, which is mostly the Weddell seal, via spy hopping, the matriarch comes up with an exact plan on how to coordinate the attack. It´s important to create a wave at the right angle and intensity, to break the big ice piece into tiny pieces. Once this is achieved, the orcas push the ice piece into open waters. The next wave is created, which washes the seal off its float. Once in the water, the orcas are in the advantage and make the kill. 

Beaching Orcas of Patagonia are known for their ability to hunt elephant seal pups on shore. They mastered a technique of using the waves to beach themselves to grab a seal pup. They stop all communication right before the attack. Orcas that are not the hunters will observe to learn. But not all of them will learn it, some of them will always stay observers. After a successful hunt, which is less than half of the attempts they undertake, they share the food with every member of the family to make sure everyone is fed.

Orca beaching to feed on a seal pup. Photo credit: Pablo Cersosimo.

Flat toothed Ecotype Orcas are an unofficial type of offshore Orca, that feed on sharks and other mammals in South Africa but also in the north of New Zealand. The most famous Orcas that are known to feed on sharks are called Port and Starboard. They´re two half-brothers that became famous, because they´re likely responsible for the disappearance of the Great White Sharks in False Bay, South Africa. They are named like this because both have collapsed dorsal fins, Port´s dorsal fin is bent to the left side and Starboard´s dorsal fin is bent to the right side. They were seen preying on sharks for a few weeks and after that no sharks were seen anymore. This also resulted in the collapse of tourism with shark cage diving in the area.  

But why do Orcas only eat the shark’s liver? The answer is simple, the livers of sharks are massive, they make up to 25% of the total body weight. In the liver is a calorie dense oil, called squalene, it´s one of the densest sources of calories that you can find in the ocean. They´re richer in fats and oils than whale blubber. Orcas that eat these livers don´t need to hunt for a few days afterwards.  

Mammal eating Orcas also display a mimicking behaviour, to make their prey come willingly with them. When they cross paths with a humpback mother and calf, they work out a strategy to have the least work with the hunt. Since humpback whales can grow up to 17m in length and sometimes are not alone, they must work smart, not hard. The key to success is patience. They wait for the perfect opportunity to scoop in and kidnap the calf, carrying it on their back, like its mother does, in the slip stream.

Of course, they not only prey on calves, but they also hunt gray whales, minke whales and even blue whales! It all is a group effort and takes a lot of time and patience sometimes, to be able to find and then also get food.  

Snapshot of a blue whale being hunted by orcas. Video credit: Our World.

Killer whales are also known for throwing seals up into the air, therefore they use their powerful big flukes. They do that to tire the animals and to inflict injuries, so that they can´t fight back as hard.  

Seal being thrown into the air by the fluke of an orca! Photo credit: Alisa Schulman-Janiger

Sometimes you also see a behaviour known as surplus killing. That means the killing or hunting part is not designed for ending up as food.

Hopefully you have enjoyed reading and watching some of the different techniques orcas use around the world for hunting. Don't worry we then still have one more blog in this orca series to come, stay tuned orca-holics!

Kylie Veal