Horrifying video shows 2 Gray whales fighting off 30 vicious Orcas in 5-hour battle
MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA: A pod of 30 orcas were seen attacking two adult gray whales in a nail-biting video captured off the coast of California using an overhead drone operated by Evan Brodsky, who was out at sea with Monterey Bay Whale Watch.
The rare footage sees the orcas trying for over five hours to devour the whales. The orcas appeared to be circling the whales before feeding on them. Although it is quite natural for orcas to attack gray whales, they normally target the far more vulnerable calves.
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However, one thing which makes this attack highly unusual is that it was very early in the season for the orcas to be attacking, as the calves are yet to arrive. Brodsky witnessed the attack until the whales managed to escape to shallower waters.
'Five hours of an attack'
"Five hours of an attack by over two dozen Bigg's killer whales on two adult gray whales, and an attempted predation - which was unsuccessful!" Brodsky wrote on Facebook, adding, "Usually killer whales will hunt gray whale calves as they head up to their northern feeding areas with their moms. But these were not calves: they were huge adult gray whales! The battered gray whales eventually made it to shallow water, and the orcas broke off. In over 30 years of documenting killer whales encounters this is the FIRST time that such an attack has been documented on adult gray whales in Monterey Bay!!!"
Bigg's orcas are transient killer whales
Bigg's orcas, also known as transient killer whales, roam the Pacific Northwest and usually feed on other marine mammals and not whales. The video gives a peek into the behavior of orcas and their hunting patterns. "Transient Killer Whales, the type that we typically see here in Monterey, have a diet of other mammals, making springtime in Monterey Bay a haven for these tactically sound hunters," Monterey Bay Whale Watch explained, according to Daily Mail.
Calves and their mothers usually stay fairly close to the shore while migrating up the California coast as there is ample food and it is much safer. As they approach Monterey Bay, however, the area's geography makes it harder for them to stay close to the coast. Orcas stick around the bay to take advantage of the vulnerable young calves in deep waters.
