5 Animals That Could Defeat A Killer Whale
Orcas are apex predators, at the top of the food chain.
No animals hunt orcas, except for humans.
However, there are a few animals that could kill or at least scare a killer whale!
Orcas or killer whales fear nothing and can eat everything in their environment,
from fish to whales.
Killer whales are the largest extant members of the dolphin family.
Males typically range from 6 to 8 meters (20 to 26 ft) long and weigh over 6 tonnes.
They are social, live in pods similar to wolves’ packs, and are very intelligent.
But what happens when these whales swim alone?
Let's find out 5 animals that could defeat a killer whale.
5. Colossal squid
Killer whales are not deep divers; they stick to shallow,
sunlit waters where most marine animals live.
Giant squids are creatures of the abyss, rarely rising to the depths where orcas live.
Now, the giant squid has come to the surface before,
leading to some terrifying accounts by sailors.
And it’s possible a killer whale came across one when it came to the surface.
As orcas are naturally curious and intelligent animals,
they might well have approached the squid.
And the squid might have sought to defend itself from the black and white menace.
Leading to a battle.
But there are no accounts of such an encounter,
and giant squids don’t generally surface like that if they’re healthy.
So it’s possible, but I don’t think it’s likely that squid and orca
have ever had clashes like the legendary battles squid have with sperm whales.
But think of a 45 feet (14 meters) squid clinging to a killer whale with its beak.
I think at some point, the orca will give up.
4. Great White Shark
Orcas outclass white sharks in both size and intelligence,
and mostly travel in groups.
A great white can beat an orca but it is usually a smaller chance.
I think the chances would increase significantly if the killer whale were alone
and if it had a smaller size, equal to that of the great white.
Adult female killer whales weigh 3-4 T.
Adult female great whites weigh between 700 kg - 1.1 T.
It is still quite small compared to its rivals.
However, the great white is known to grow to a length of 6.1 m and weighs 2 T.
I think when it is at this size it can beat a female orca that weighs 3 T.
A great white could kill a sickly orca.
Great whites usually only dine on large ocean animals such as whales
and orcas if they are sick or already dead.
A Great White has massive jaws, and serrated teeth which tear
and are more effective than orca teeth.
Orcas are way heavier, faster, and smarter,
but that doesn't mean the great white has no chance!
At such a mouth, think what would happen if the orca made a mistake
and was bitten by the shark.
In theory, great whites can still kill killer whales
if the size difference is not too great and orcas are alone.
Anyway, the probability of these two happening at the same time is very low.
3. Blue Whale
Blue whales are the largest animals ever known to have lived on Earth.
These magnificent marine mammals rule the oceans at up to 100 feet long (30 m)
and upwards of 200 tons.
Their tongues alone can weigh as much as an elephant.
It is very rare for orcas to hunt blue whales,
however if they are extremely hungry they will be able to do so
but will hunt with the whole group, as one will never be enough to do the job.
The blue whale protects itself by literally going to the bathroom
and using its fluke to move it all over.
The blue whale has virtually no predators because of its size.
Orcas are known to kill juvenile blue whales.
When it comes to adults,
there is at least one recorded instance of a pod of Orca attacking a medium-sized adult.
They failed in that case but they went about it as if they knew what they were doing
and had done it before,
and had a reasonable expectation of success.
Blue whales are very large and might require a lot of orcas to overcome.
Even then, scientists still have doubts about whether killer whales can kill adult whales.
There is one case where a literal superpod of 29 orcas hunted
a 60 feet (18 m) 30 tons blue whale.
And the whale was young and was already weakened by sickness.
There's no way orcas can kill an adult blue whale.
So certainly, due to their size, a blue whale could defeat a killer whale,
in fact, it could even hurt it with its fluke.
2. Humpback Whale
Humpback whales are very interesting animals
and protect almost any animal getting attacked by orcas.
Exactly why they do this isn't known.
Some theorize it is personal to the whales
or maybe the noise that the orcas give off while hunting.
It has been observed that those whales that fight back
have scars from orca attacks later in life.
So perhaps the whales recall what the orcas did to them
and don't want it to happen to someone else.
The whales know the abuse
and will not allow another animal no matter the species, to be harmed.
Anyway, the humpbacks have been aggressively chasing off any orcas
they see feeding or hunting.
Being much larger than killer whales,
even in a 1 on 1 confrontation,
humpback whales are very aggressive with a killer whale.
So even if he can't kill an orca,
he will definitely be able to chase it away, trumpeting loudly to scare them off.
1. Sperm Whale
A bull sperm whale in his prime is too big,
too unpredictable, and too mean for one killer whale.
A female sperm whale weighs only a third of a male,
and based on reported encounters,
it takes a sizeable effort from an orca pod to take even a female out.
This is why when the killer whales want to attack a sperm whale,
they will do it on the pods.
Male sperm whales have been observed to attack
and intimidate orca pods in competitive feeding instances.
An incident was filmed from a long-line trawler:
an orca pod was systematically taking fish caught on the trawler's long lines.
A male sperm whale appeared to repeatedly charge the orca pod
in an attempt to drive them away,
it was speculated by the film crew that the sperm whale was attempting to access the same fish.
The orcas employed a tail outward
and tail slapping defensive position against the bull sperm whale
similar to that used by female sperm whales against attacking orcas.
When sperm whales are attacked they often form a rosette,
a wagon-wheel formation with their heads pointed in and their tails pointed out.
When they are in this formation,
they flail the water with their massive tails in an effort to ward off the attackers.
The killer whales must be very careful around agitated sperm whales
because a slap from that tail could be life-threatening.
That's the end of my clip.
Thanks for watching,
see you again.