Introducing Interesting Facts about killer whale.

The killer whale belongs to the mammals that live in aquatic environment. The speed at which killer whales can swim reaches 50 km / h.

The killer whale is also called the largest carnivorous dolphin. The color of the killer whale is represented by two colors, that is, black and white. Her throat and belly are painted white, and her sides and back are painted black.

However, in nature one can only find white or black killer whale, but this is already a consequence of a genetic deviation, because ideally they are black and white.

However, the shape of the spots can be different, which makes it possible to separate killer whales into separate individuals. Males and females differ in both weight and length. For example, the mass of males is 7.5 tons with a length of about 10 m, and the mass of females is no more than 4 tons with a length of 7 m.

Unlike other dolphins in killer whales, pectoral flippers are sharp and oval and wide in shape. At the same time, killer whale males have an upright, curved and high fin on their backs. And in females dorsal twice as small and curved.

A killer whale can have 40 to 60 teeth. At the same time, the length of the teeth is about 13 cm. Such teeth help them to easily hunt and eat other smaller ones. marine mammals.

Killer whales live in small groups, and each such group has its own sound signals that they give to each other. They emit signals both common to all killer whales, and only for their group. Within the group, they are friendly to each other and even take care of injured individuals. The number of individuals in the group can reach fifty pieces.

Killer whales are very cunning and smart in the way they get their food. They can swim up to the ice floe on which the walruses lie and knock them over into the water. If this happened, then walruses are unlikely to be able to escape, since killer whales hunt in packs, that is, they completely surround their prey. And if the killer whales have conceived the hunt for the sperm whale, then they tend to push it to the surface, because it seeks to hide as quickly as possible in the water column and deeper. The average amount of food for killer whales per day is about 150 kg..

As for the offspring the female carries the cub for about 17 months. It is born no more than 2.5 m. In the period up to 40 years, females can have about 5-6 cubs, that is, once every 6-10 years. Killer whales, like humans, have a period of menopause, after which they live, but do not give offspring.

If we talk about life expectancy, then in females it is much longer than in males. So average duration the life of males is about 30 years, and females live up to 50-80 years.

Killer whales are generally friendly towards humans. However, you need to be extremely careful during the breeding season, since it is at this moment that killer whales are very irritable.

it short video not worth watching especially impressionable people. A killer whale eats a man standing by the sea. The killer whale jump was unexpected for everyone.

General information about killer whale

The killer whale belongs to the order Ordo cetaceans, the suborder Subordo toothed whales, the family Familia dolphins Delphinidae, the species Genus killer whale Orcinus, the species Speeies the killer whale Oreinus arca.

Killer whales are the largest of the dolphins. Their mass can reach up to 9 tons. They are called killer whales, the ancient Romans called them orcs, which means demons. They are afraid of both divers and divers. In the diver's reference manual, it is written about them that if a killer whale attacked you, then everything is already a foregone conclusion for you, there is no salvation.

habitation- near the shore and open water.

View status- widespread.

Group size - 3-25 (1-50).

Location of the dorsal fin- Slightly shifted forward.

Newborn weight- up to 180 kg.

Adult weight- 2.6-9 tons.

Newborn length- 2.1-2.7 m.

Adult length- females up to 8.7 m (with the number of dentine layers on the teeth up to 29), males up to 10 m.

Food- fish, cephalopods and marine mammals.

general information

The largest and very agile carnivorous dolphins. Fossils of this species have been found in Italy (Tuscany) and England (Suffolk) in Pliocene deposits (about 1.5 million years ago), and the remains of the ancestors of killer whales dating back to the prehistoric period have been found in Northern Europe. Killer whales are social animals. Their herds usually consist of one leader male, several adult females and young whales of both sexes. Almost every flock has its own part of the water area, where it feeds and which protects it from strangers.

Animals from the same area have their own language, so scientists, when studying different populations use the features of "pronunciation" as the main hallmark. Whales feed mainly on fish (salmon), although they do not disdain warm-blooded animals. AT southern hemisphere seals form the basis of the diet ( sea ​​lions and seals) and penguins. There are known cases of a flock of killer whales hunting other whales - fin whales, blue whales, young humpback whales.

In the Middle Ages, this species was often found, along with whales, off the coast of the Gulf of Gascony. It was during these times that its most ancient French name appeared: epolar. Some authors found it possible to identify the killer whale with " orca" ancient: but the animal mentioned, in particular by Pliny, under the name orca denoted an indefinite cetacean that could be either a killer whale or a sperm whale.

As noted by Georges Cuvier at the beginning of the 19th century, the animal, briefly described by ancient authors under the name of killer whale, most likely corresponds to what the Latins called " aries marinus, that is, "sea sheep", which may have been associated with a white spot behind the eye, which depicted something like a horn.

killer whale behavior

Finally, the oldest Latin name relating to the killer whale is Delphinus orca, or "orca dolphin". Because of the reputation the most dangerous killer killer whale got its English name killer whale("killer whale"). The killer whale was also the protagonist of the myths of the Indians North America. The Russian name, presumably, comes from the word "braid", with which the high dorsal fin of males is associated. According to observations of a group of killer whales, on average, there are slightly more adults (57%) than cubs (43%), of which about 4% are still fed with mother's milk. Among adults, the number of females is slightly higher than the number of males (34 and 23%, respectively), which is undoubtedly explained by more high level mortality among the latter. Each group is like a family, using their own acoustic repertoire, which makes it easy to distinguish them. Very stable, however, it can disintegrate for several hours, especially during the search for food. Separate animals or several subgroups then swim together, but at a distance of several kilometers from each other.

However, group stability is not absolute, and some individuals may choose independence. Family groups are usually independent in relation to each other. Nevertheless, several of them can unite in a community for the breeding season.

Studies have made it possible to draw up something like a typical killer whale daily routine: 46% of its time, that is, about half, is devoted to searching for food and catching prey; 27% - moving; 13% - games and sexual activity; 12% - rest and sleep. Meetings with other groups take up the remaining approximately 2% of the time. These activities are replaced sequentially, in a certain order: for example, rest usually replaces hunting and may continue with games that precede travel.

Killer whales often take a position that is convenient for observing the surroundings. Once on the surface, they sharply raise their heads out of the water or stretch vertically, sometimes showing up to the level of their pectoral fins, as if to cover the entire horizon with their eyes. Several animals from the group and cubs can take the observation posture at the same time. Often, entering the game with other members of the herd, the killer whale sharply beats the water with its fins. The noise it makes as it quickly splashes across the surface of the water pectoral fins or rhythmically pounding on it with a tail blade, quickly spreads through the water. Having put her tail out of the water, she shakes it from side to side for a long time or makes amazing jumps: almost completely jumping out of the water, she dives head first or most often falls heavily on her belly, back or side, raising clouds of spray. Like other dolphins, killer whales love to touch each other. These contacts between individuals are short, the animals spend much more time, sometimes about an hour, rubbing against certain stones at the bottom, which are used only for this purpose. Swimming past algae, killer whales cannot resist the desire to touch them and bring some of the plants to the surface in order to better feel their touch on their tail fins. It is unknown if this is done for play, pleasure, or out of necessity.

On dense schools of fish, it can peacefully graze with other cetaceans. But if there are no fish or shellfish, it can attack any kind of minke and gray whales, many species of dolphins and pinnipeds, sea otters, penguins, and even dugongs in algae. Dealing with a large prey, predators act as a herd, while females with cubs keep aloof, but are very active when eating prey. In a whale, killer whales open their mouths, dig their teeth into its throat, shred a massive tongue, bite its fins, drown the victim, not allowing it to come up to the surface for breathing. Occasionally, predators attack sperm whale families if there are cubs among them. Killer whales tear their prey sharply, rowing themselves with their pectoral fins. Predators first surround a herd of seals, walruses or dolphins, and then destroy them one by one. With a back blow from below, they throw off the seals dozing on the ice floes.

With a coordinated search, killer whales find schools of fish more easily. They disperse, forming a chain of hunters 2 km long, and swim at a speed of about 5 km/h. So they can investigate??? with the help of echolocation about 10 km 2 per hour - a much larger area compared to that which could be covered by a single killer whale or a dense group. Echolocation signals allow each animal to determine its position relative to others, stay in contact with them and participate in the overall activities of the group. However, they are not enough when it is necessary to precisely coordinate the actions of the entire group, especially when we are talking about the surroundings of a school of fish; in such cases, the killer whale uses sound signals.

Methods that justify themselves when looking for schools of fish are completely unsuitable when killer whales hunt marine mammals. This type of hunting has its own characteristics - after all, future victims can either hear predators, catching the sounds they make, which is available to cetaceans (whales or dolphins), or see them, what pinnipeds are capable of. That is why killer whales explore the waters in complete silence, relying only on their hearing. It is thanks to him that predators detect prey by the noise it makes when moving or by the signals it makes. Killer whales are also well aware of the places where whales, seals and fur seals usually gather at certain times of the year to breed.

Orca bite teeth marks were found on the body of 53% of examined fin whales, 24% of sei whales, 6% of minke whales and 65% of sperm whales. Before eating their prey, predators play with their prey and teach the cubs the art of hunting. These cetaceans usually do not attack a person, but they do not show fear in front of him, approaching whaling ships and boats. In captivity, they are peaceful, quickly get used to people and take food from the hands.

They are very fast (up to 55 km/h), often change course and quickly recognize danger. The baby is growing fast. During the first year, he apparently feeds only on the milk of his mother, whom he never leaves. If he is hungry, he “begs” for milk, gently pushing his nose into the mother’s belly next to the nipple, and deftly picks up the jet of life-giving liquid sprayed out by her.

This mammal is known to be one of the most serious predators of the ocean and causes many people real horror. However, there are no documented cases of this animal attacking humans.

This article will let you know a little more about these amazing creatures to better understand how and how they live.

1. Despite their creepy nickname "killer whales", these creatures are primarily dolphins, as they belong to the Delphinidae (dolphin) family and only secondarily belong to the order of cetaceans.

2. Although they live in water, they are mammals, so killer whales are viviparous and feed their babies with mother's milk.

3. Like everyone else, they are not able to breathe underwater, like fish, and are forced to periodically replenish their oxygen supply by floating to the surface of the water. If you ever see a killer whale emerging from the water, then know that it is she who breathes.

4. These creatures are also the fastest swimmers in the ocean and can reach an impressive speed of 30 miles (over 50 km) per hour. A person is very far from a killer whale in this regard.

5. An adult animal consumes up to 5% of its own weight per day, that is, over 500 pounds.

6. These are social creatures and they live in packs, in which there are usually from 6 to 40 individuals.

7. Killer whales are able to completely control the flow of blood to the brain and heart, which allows them to economically distribute oxygen supplies while under water.

8. It is noteworthy that killer whales do not mate with related individuals, but choose their partners from other flocks.

9. It is curious that the color of the body and the location of the spots in each individual is unique. Scientists use this feature to identify animals in research and observations.

10. Killer whales use certain sounds to communicate with each other, and each flock has its own unique “accent”, which gives individual individuals the ability to quickly find their own and determine which flock the “interlocutor” belongs to.

Killer whale. The killer whale received such a nickname for a reason. Reputation dangerous predator with a wide "taste" spectrum, turned the killer whale into the image of a tough killer. Let's try to figure out if this is really the case.

Killer whales are the largest carnivorous dolphins. They eat literally all living things: fish, cephalopods, marine mammals. When there is enough food, the killer whale coexists peacefully with other cetaceans, but if the killer whales get hungry, they will attack any minke whales and whales, other dolphins, pinnipeds, and even penguins without hesitation. Moreover, the size of the victim does not matter: if it is large, then the killer whales act as a whole herd. When it is not possible to kill the victim with one blow, killer whales exhaust it by biting off pieces of meat from its body. They dig their teeth into the whale's throat, tear its tongue, shred its fins.

If killer whales attacked a baby whale, then it is no longer possible to save him, he is doomed. Fast killer whales, swimming at speeds up to 55 km / h, simply cannot be overtaken by a mother protecting her child.

With a blow on an ice floe, they knock over dormant seals into the water, surrounding a herd of dolphins or walruses, killer whales methodically destroy it piece by piece. Looking at hunting killer whales, one cannot help but admire how well-coordinated and coolly they act. When one dolphin cannot get a prey, others come to its aid. Surprisingly, it seems that killer whales just love to kill: they push the seal on one side of the ice floe so that it falls into the mouths of relatives located on the other side. Nobody pulls the blanket over themselves. Slowly, they swim around the ice floe, on which the seal found its last refuge, raise their muzzle out of the water, as if making sure that the victim does not attempt to hide, roll big waves trying to wash the poor guy off the ice.

Killer whales have a complex social organization: females with cubs of both sexes form a family. Several families, gathering together, organize a grouping (from the English pod). The members of the group are very strongly attached to each other, the relations between its members are very warm and friendly. Healthy killer whales help sick or old siblings. In the hunt they take Active participation adult strong individuals, while females with cubs are on the sidelines, but nevertheless participate in the meal. Well, if a member of the group is dissatisfied with something, then the maximum that he will do is indignantly slam his fin on the surface of the water.

Sometimes several groups join together for joint hunting or mating. Since the members of the same group are connected family ties, then pairing occurs between members various groups. Meeting throughout the world's oceans, killer whales do not enter only the Black and East Siberian Seas.

Killer whales can "peep" out of the water in search of food.

Scientists distinguish two types of killer whales: homebodies and transit killer whales.

homebodies- these are killer whales, feeding mainly on fish, and only in some cases looking at pinnipeds. This type of killer whales unites in groups of up to 15 individuals, walking in a chain and looking for schools of fish. Killer whales knock down the discovered school of fish into a ball on the surface of the water, drown the fish with their tails and dive into the center of the school one by one. In fairness, it should be noted that these homebodies, or resident killer whales, do not at all correspond to the nickname of killer whales. Their behavior and way of feeding is reminiscent of humpback whales.

The second type of killer whale is transit killer whales. These are the real killers. Their diet includes other dolphins, whales, pinnipeds, sea otters, sea lions. There is evidence that killer whales attack deer and elk that swim across small channels. An interesting observation: killer whale bite marks were found in half of the examined fin whales, sei whales and 65% of sperm whales. Imagine - every second sperm whale in his life was attacked by a killer whale.

Transiting killer whales congregate in smaller groups compared to stay-at-homes. The group consists of 3 - 5 individuals. Distinctive feature such a group is its "silence", as mammals hunted by killer whales can hear their voices.

When hunting for seals, killer whales use natural shelters in the bottom topography. Moreover, one male sits in ambush, and the rest of the group members wait at a distance. When hunting for sea ​​lions killer whales are washed ashore, catching the animals by surprise. This method of hunting is the most spectacular and can be seen regularly on the shores of Patagonia.

When attacking a whale, males are involved, trying to drown the victim, preventing it from floating to the surface to breathe. And when attacking a sperm whale, on the contrary, they push it to the surface so that it does not hide in the depths.

The prey size of transit killer whales often exceeds the amount they can eat at one time. Therefore, killer whales do not eat the whole whale, but devour the tongue, throat and lips. The tongue of whales is a delicacy for killer whales, they try to open their mouths to a still living whale in order to cling to it.

During the hunt, adults demonstrate to the young the hunting techniques used by this group. In this way, the group's own hunting traditions are passed from generation to generation, by which it is possible to determine in which family a particular killer whale was brought up.

A killer whale needs up to 150 kg per day. food, and there is no shortage of it: a variety of diet and lack of natural enemies put the killer whale at the top of the food chain.

But killer whales, those killer whales, have a downside. Killer whales are the most human-friendly predatory animals. In the wild, they do not show fear to humans; all killer whale attacks on humans were committed either by wounded animals or in self-defense. Killer whales often swim up to ships, exposing their muzzles above the water, as if examining it. Being in captivity, they very quickly get used to the person, they are easy to train. When keeping a killer whale with other dolphins or even seals, you don’t have to worry that they will attack: they don’t show any aggression. Apparently, while on the high seas, killer whales attack mammals solely to satisfy their hunger. Killer whales in captivity are fed 160 kg of red fish daily. But after all, there are undoubtedly fewer calories in fish than in the fat and meat of sea lions, which is why they replenish their strength faster by hunting pinnipeds.

The only period when killer whales become very irritable and aggressive is during the breeding season.

Among all cetaceans, killer whales have an outstanding reputation. Many consider them natural born killers. The reference book on zoology says that killer whales are killer whales, hunting even large whales.

Killer whale life

The killer whale belongs to the dolphin family and has 40 or 48 teeth. Their males have dimensions reaching up to 7 meters in length, and their mass is approaching 4 tons. Their dorsal fin does not contain bones and reaches two meters in males, but less than half in females. This helps to easily distinguish between females and males. Although killer whales are found in all areas, all oceans, it is not easy to meet them.

Basically, the whole life of killer whales takes place in flocks, which are a family union. Male killer whales live for about 50 years, and the life span of females is much longer, 70–80 years. Therefore, their number is somewhat larger than the number of males.

The birth rate of these cetaceans is extremely miserable, no more than 5 percent, and only slightly higher. natural level their mortality. However, in flocks that have thinned greatly due to the fact that killer whales were caught or destroyed by whalers, the birth rate of killer whales rises sharply and their number increases.

The ability to give birth is lost by females when they reach the age of 40-50 years, and the period during which cubs can be born lasts only about ten years.

In their flocks, killer whales adhere to matriarchy. This is professed among large animals only by elephants. Unlike elephants, the males of these animals spend their whole lives near their female, who gave birth to them. Surprisingly, there are flocks of killer whales where there is not a single male, and if one male is found, unaccompanied by females, this means that his mother was caught or died. It is quite obvious that over time, some flocks of killer whales die out, and others appear in their place.

Exploring the life of killer whales, it should be noted that different families have different tastes in nutrition. Scientists identified two varieties of taste preferences - the first group was called resident, since the animals belonging to it feed mainly on fish, and the second group was called transit, and it included killer whales that prefer to hunt mammals of a different species. In hunting, killer whales proved to be exceptionally resourceful and proved their title as masters of the oceans and seas.

Considering that killer whales are predators and very aggressive, it is impossible to believe that they are very peaceful towards people and are well trained.