Spectacular drone footage off the coast of Western Australia: A young humpback whale appears to be in distress. A family of orcas swim towards him.
The video was taken on a whale watching trip by Whale Watch Western Australia. The organizers were surprised to see the baleen whale in the waters of Bremer Bay. Normally the animals stay in the Antarctic at this time of the year.
Bremer Bay’s killer whales are known to prey on young whales. Whale Watch Australia observed 15 killer whales attacking a young humpback whale in 2021 – at that time the whale was able to get to safety.
This young whale would also be a possible prey for the animals. He is weakened and part of his body is caught in a fishing net.
The orcas keep swimming towards the animal. The whale tries to drive them away with violent flapping of its flukes. The trippers watch as a female orca, the leader of the orca family, swims under the humpback whale.
“And then something incredible happened. Much of the green web the animal was tangled in emerged to the surface.” Gemma Sharp, organizer
The humpback whale is free. The orcas move away from the animal. They leave observers wondering if the animals may have been helping the young whale on purpose.
field biologist dr Michael Weiss from the Center for Whale Research has researched the social behavior of orcas. For him, it is unlikely that caring is hidden behind the behavior of the animals.
“While anything is possible and whales continue to surprise us, based on observations and our knowledge of killer whale interactions with humpback whales, I find it unlikely that they actively helped the humpback whale.”
“It may have been curiosity, play, or even an attempted attack. This can also lead to the objects becoming detached during the encounter,” says Dr. Michael Weiss vs. star.
Most interactions between orcas and humpback whales are more aggressive – or the animals avoid each other, the biologist explains. So it is unlikely that the whales acted as saviors. The behavior of the humpback whale also suggests this. When he freed himself, he approached the boat to take shelter and rest.
Source: Whale Watch Western Australia;