The Monterey Bay Whale Watch team had been following about 15 killer whales on the day she captured this drone footage. In the 25 years she's been observing orcas and other cetaceans in the bay, she's become familiar with how orcas interact with the region's other residents. They are very playful and social."īlack runs the whale-watching business Monterey Bay Whale Watch. "They play with like cats play with their prey. "They were probably doing it for the heck of it," says Black. The real reason the orcas likely orchestrated an attack? In this instance, the large blue whale flipped on its side, sending up what seemed like a wall of water, and swam away at a speed that far outpaced the orcas, says marine biologist Nancy Black, who captured the event from on board a whale-watching boat. But even these fearsome predators don't stand much of a chance against a mature blue whale: The largest animal on the planet, an adult blue whale can reach up to a hundred feet long and weigh close to 200 tons. Orcas, also known as killer whales, are known to prey on other marine mammals, including dolphins and seals. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries Office of Protected Resources.In drone footage captured on May 18 in Monterey, California, a group of orcas is seen carrying out a coordinated attack on a blue whale. NOAA Technical Memorandum, NOAA-TMNMFS-SWFSC-532. Pacific Marine Mammal Stock Assessments: 2013. Document PSRG-2013-13 presented to the Pacific Scientific Review Group, April 2013.Ĭarretta, J. Updated abundance estimates of blue and humpback whales off the US west coast incorporating photo-identifications from 20. Additionally, changes in peak primary productivity and euphausiid abundance could lead to alterations in blue whale migration timing.Ĭalambokidis, J. Therefore, increases in ocean temperature or changes in ocean circulation, as well as increases in ocean acidity, could lead to declines in euphausiid abundance and limited prey availability for blue whales. Cooler, upwelling waters support high primary production and euphausiid biomass, while warmer waters like those found during positive Pacific Decadal Oscillations cycles and strong El Niño events lead to lower primary productivity and decreased euphausiid abundance. Blue whales require large aggregations of euphausiids for optimal foraging, and euphausiid conditions are strongly linked with oceanographic variability. Their overall sensitivity is expected to be highest due to potential changes in their primary prey, euphausiids, or krill. Feeding occurs during summer and fall off the United States west coast (especially California) and, to a lesser extent, off British Columbia, in the Gulf of Alaska, and in the central North Pacific.ĭue to their migratory patterns and the wide range of ocean conditions that they experience, blue whales are unlikely to experience significant physiological sensitivity to climate-induced ocean changes. The stock mostly migrates between northern summer feeding locations and wintering areas off western Mexico and Central America. Individuals occurring off the Washington coast belong to the Eastern North Pacific stock the whales do not enter the state's inner waters. The total global population is estimated at 10,000 to 24,000 whales. Geographic rangeīlue whale distribution covers the world's oceans from the tropics to higher latitudes. Singing is performed only by males and occurs year-round. Life span of this species is estimated to be 80 to 90 years. Healthy adults are not particularly vulnerable to predators, but calves are likely vulnerable to shark and killer whale attacks.īlue whales produce sounds that travel long distances through the water. It is suspected that calves, at approximately six months of age, may stop feeding on their mother’s milk and start feeding independently. Breeding between blue whales and fin whales has produced hybrids.īlue whales do not form close social groups, but typically occur alone or in pairs. The average calving interval is probably two to three years, and the age of sexual maturity is thought to be 5 to 15 years. The whales return to lower latitudes in winter, where most reproductive activity takes place, including births and mating. Poleward movements in spring allow the whales to travel to areas with high summer and fall production of krill.Ī blue whale consumes up to 8,000 pounds of krill in a day, and it can filter up to 70 percent of its body weight in water during each feeding lunge. Krill, a type of euphausiid, are small, shrimplike animals. This large baleen whale forages primarily on krill along continental shelf slopes and deeper oceanic waters. Photo by NOAA/Cascadia Research Collective A blue whale spouts in Pacific Northwest waters Monofilament recovery and recycling program.
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