How do Killer Whales around the World Hunt?

Killer whales are masters in the art of predation. Like a pack of wolves, they coordinate, communicate and work in teams to hunt and trap their prey. They know how to exploit their environment to increase their chances of capturing their next meal. For example, they position themselves in channels in the pack ice to remain better hidden, or attack at specific times of the year such as during the spawning (fish), pupping (seals) or calving (whales) seasons.

When attacking other cetaceans, some killer whales go for the fins while others bite the blowhole area to restrict the breathing of their prey. The lips, tongue and part of the blubber of the prey will be consumed. Sea lions and seals are stunned before being devoured. In the Strait of Gibraltar, killer whales chase a school of Atlantic bluefin tuna at full speed until the latter are exhausted.

The resident population of Andfjorden Fjord in Norway feeds on herring using a precise technique called carousel feeding. This technique involves encircling the school of fish, herding them into a ball and maintaining this tight group at the surface by performing alternating dives downward, like a carousel. Killer whales stun the prey on the edge of the ball with their tails and snatch them up. Sometimes even humpback whales take advantage of this strategy and also participate in the killer whales’ carousel. http://www.whoi.edu/page.do?pid=126458&cl=94493&article=29066&tid=5122

Killer whales of the Type B population in the Antarctic have learned to hunt Weddell seals by creating a wave to knock them off the ice floe that they are resting on. If necessary, killer whales even lift the ice with their heads and flip their prey into the water. http://www.discovery.com/tv-shows/frozen-planet/videos/killer-whales-wave-wash-seal/

Killer whales of the population off the coast of Argentina coordinate their feeding with the natural movement of the waves and tides. They voluntarily beach themselves to catch Patagonian sea lion pups. http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/whale_killer_hunts_sealion

Killer whales in the Northwest Atlantic population are nomadic and dispersed. They have a varied diet, though hunting scenes of minke whales have already been documented.

Around the world, whether they are nomadic, resident or oceanic, these carnivores have refined their diet by adapting to their environment. This specialization across different populations and sub-populations of killer whales has inevitably led to different lifestyles and hunting techniques. Studies have shown that these techniques are passed from generation to generation via the education of youth by adults. Male killer whales sometimes live for long periods (up to 30 years) with their mothers, most likely so that the latter can transfer to them a host of hunting skills.

To learn more:

Killer whale

Greedy killer whale eats 27 porpoises and seals

La nageoire dorsale de l’épaulard qui s’affaisse? (in French)

Des épaulards apprennent les vocalisent des dauphins (in French)

Les épaulards de la Colombie-Britannique seraient contaminés (in French)