Page 78 - World of Animals - Book of Sharks & Ocean Predators

Sharks & Ocean Predators
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Quick questions
with an expert
Name: Erich Hoyt
Role: Whale and dolphin researcher
Organisation: Research fellow with Whale and Dolphin Conservation UK
You were working as a sound later, we are still learning every For your book, Orca: The shore waters. We truly felt a
engineer to record orcas’ day about this amazing and Whale Called Killer, you part of their world.
voices before dedicating your beautiful species. spent time living among pods
career to the scientifi c study of killer whales off northern As a senior research fellow
and conservation of them. They’ve been called wolves of Vancouver Island, Canada. with Whale and Dolphin
Can you describe that fi rst the sea and killing demons. Could you share some of your Conservation UK, what can
encounter with a killer whale? What did orcas do to earn such experiences? people do to help ensure the
I learned some of the orca frightening names? I spent ten summers with the continued survival of this
sounds on an electronic They are predators at the top same pods of killer whales, amazing animal?
synthesizer and on one of the of the food chain. From Greek getting to know them as Join a whale-conservation
first times we met the killer and Roman times orcas were individuals and families. group, adopt an orca, a dolphin

whales I played them my seen hunting together in pods, Some were very stand-offi sh, or a whale, volunteer, refuse
imitation of one of their calls. killing and eating larger whale while others such as two to go to SeaWorld, read all you
A er a moment’s hesitation, species. That would have older matriarchs, Nicola and can about the ocean. A good

two or three whales answered earned them some of those Stubbs, were very friendly and starting point is the website
in unison with a perfect mimic names. At the same time, tolerant of our presence. There Whales.org or its Facebook
of my sound. Later we realised however, in native cultures were a couple of hyperactive page. Read up, follow them and
that since the young whales living around the Pacifi c rim, youngsters in the early years get to know the whale world!
are born without the sounds orcas were highly respected that we called The Twins. They
of the pod, that mimicry is an for their hunting ability. Some weren’t actually twins but hung Orca: The Whale Called Killer
important method for learning cultures saw them as their around together and used to by Erich Hoyt is digitally
what turned out to be vocal ancestors and put them on play around our boat. They available on Kindle. For more
dialects that were unique to their totem poles to be admired would also come by our camp information, visit www.
each pod. Now, many years and respected. at night and splash in the near- erichhoytbooks.com.

“Orcas show high levels of emotional intelligence in the form of recreation, too. In fact, the
whales are well known for their playfulness and curiosity.
capacity, self-awareness and problem- and landing on their side or back with a colossal splash,
They’re also often observed leaping out of the ocean
solving skills that show a superior intellect” known as breaching, and lob-tailing, which involves

slapping the tail flukes on the water’s surface. These
displays of water acrobatics can be a sign the killer whales
BELOW The Since the 1970s there have been attacks on nearly are courting, relieving an itch or purely playing. Mothers
family structures two dozen people worldwide, but opinion is divided dedicate a lot of time to the latter, investing so much time
within pods is
integral to killer over whether these are accidents or deliberate attacks. in being good parents that they only have a calf every fi ve
whale survival, Orca expert and neuroscientist Lori Marino doesn’t years or so. This is also due to a lengthy gestation period
and is a big underestimate this animal’s intelligence: “I’m not trying to of 16 to 18 months – the longest of any whale. This is
indicator of their
huge intelligence second-guess what was in this particular whale’s mind,” surprising since they are by no means the largest mammal
she told Orlando Sentinel, referring to a recent fatality in of the ocean, but it takes time to develop such a large
an aquatic park. “Certainly, if we are talking about whether brain – the second largest of any animal on the planet.
killer whales have the wherewithal and the cognitive Fascinatingly, killer whales also experience the
capacity to intentionally strike out at someone, or to be menopause just like human females do. They are one of
angry, or to really know what they are doing, I would only three species that continue to live long after they
have to say the answer they do.” have stopped reproducing, which means the mothers
Researchers agree that orcas exhibit can devote the rest of their lives to taking care of their
high levels of emotional capacity, self- offspring and grandchildren. The reason for this unusual
awareness and problem-solving skills evolutionary trait is believed to lie in their social structure,
that hint at a superior intellect. where mothers take a leading role.
Fishermen tell stories of Alaskan Each member of the pod pitches in to raise the
killer whales stealing fi sh from young and the bonds between them are akin to human
longlines and, when the men families. When a calf dies, for example, mothers have
started positioning their been witnessed carrying their baby with their heads
boats miles apart and and when the calf slips, the family dives to retrieve the
taking turns to reel in body. They appear to become withdrawn, go off their
the haul, the orcas split food and regularly return to the spot where their family
into two groups. member died. As humans, it’s difficult for us to avoid

Footage of killer projecting our own feelings onto an animal, but it seems
whales playing with that killer whales – and other highly intelligent species
chunks of ice when such as bottlenose dolphins and elephants – mourn their
a man tossed a dead. It’s heartbreaking, but this emotional intelligence is
snow ball in their just another indication of how astoundingly clever these
direction shows animals really are.

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