By Jason Bittel Off Baja California in Mexico, a killer whale named after an Aztec emperor is leading his pod on routine takedowns of the largest fish in the sea: whale sharks. There have been ...

Killer whales surface to breath before taking whale shark down and delivering a rapid, final blow. Image: Kelsey Williamson. Researchers observed four hunting events in the Gulf of California where ...

Orcas, better known as killer whales, have been spotted hunting whale sharks, the world's largest shark species, that can grow up to 40 feet -- which has surprised the scientists. The orca pod ...

A pod of orcas off the coast of Mexico appears to have learned new skills that help them hunt whale sharks — the ... Although they are known as killer whales, orcas are actually the largest ...

(Credit: Kelsey Williamson) Orcas can get organized. When hunting for whale sharks — the world’s largest fish — a pod of killer whales appears to target the youngest most vulnerable sharks, ram them ...

A whale shark being brought to the surface by killer whales. (Credit: Kelsey Williamson) In the Gulf of California, an unusual behavior has emerged among a pod of killer whales, revealing their ...

“As we drove our boat towards all that activity, we saw the unmistakable shape of a killer whale,” he recalled. “We knew immediately that we were in for something pretty special.” Based on ...

whale sharkThe researchers’ analysis revealed exactly how the killer whales, often hunting as a group, subdue the whale shark.First, the orcas use their bodies to hit a whale shark at high speed.

Sequence of killer whale attack on whale shark on 26 May 2024. Two of the killer whales brought the whale shark to the surface. First, the orcas repeatedly ram a slow-swimming whale shark to stun it.

The adult male killer whale Moctezuma and five other killer whales (two adult females, two juveniles, one calf), in the vicinity of the juvenile whale shark, measuring around 6 meters. The whale ...

Table 1. Criteria used to evaluate whether Southern Resident Killer Whale (SRKW) are facing imminent threats to survival or recovery. This table compares findings from the 2018 Imminent Threat ...