Orca: Orcinus

Random Facts: Orca or Killer whales are the largest member of the dolphin family.  Because they are at the top of their food chain they feed on just about anything including; fish, seals, sea birds and sometimes whales.  The Orca’s only predator is human beings.

Orca’s have never been know to attack a human, they are however very curious and will approach us to see what we are up to. Many divers have reported being “nudged” by an Orca. They are also easily domesticated.    Orcas are very social animals and live in pods of 6 to as large as 40. These Pods are like large families with the matriarch or oldest female in charge of the pod.  It is also believed that each pod has a different dialect when they communicate.  Transient Orcas travel in smaller pods and have not yet been seen to socialize with resident Orca’s which tend to return to the same areas and have larger pods.  Orca’s can be found in every sea on earth and while not considered endangered in some areas their resident populations have being going down and it is suspected that toxins in the water are the reason.