Humpbacks trying to fight off killer whale feeding frenzy

[Peter1469]

Humpbacks trying to fight off killer whale feeding frenzy

Killer whales are tearing into the gray whales off San Francisco. This week 60-70 Humpbacks showed up to interfere in the feeding frenzy. They apparently like to screw with the killer whales. This article and others have videos of the feeding frenzy. Sad.

SFGATE reported last week on the killer whales' unprecedented string of attacks on gray whales, which are migrating through the Monterey Bay on their way from Mexico to Alaska. The back-to-back killings have certainly drawn attention. But as San Francisco Chronicle outdoors writer Tom Stienstra pointed out in his most recent column, the involvement of humpback whales in these interactions has been largely overlooked.

Nancy Black, a marine biologist with Monterey Bay Whale Watch, explained that humpback whales have come to Monterey Bay a few weeks earlier than usual this year. Black estimates there are about 60 or 70 in the area right now. Their early arrival means they're around to witness the orcas' hunting season.



And the humpbacks don't seem content to eat anchovies and mind their own business.


"Humpbacks like to interfere with the killer whales for some strange reason," Black told SFGATE. "They seem to want to protect the prey."

[Common]

I love nature but I dont like to watch the brutal side of it.

I watched a video of a school of killer whales attacking a humpback, relentlessly over and over eating the poor defenseless whale alive. Took 6 hrs for him to die

[decedent]

I watched a video of orcas killing a baby humpback by drowning it. They kept jumping on top of it to keep it under water. The mother couldn't do much to stop it. Brutal.

[The Xl]

Nature is brutal, this world isn't pretty. Not a fan of it.

[Peter1469]

Anyway it is neat that when the Orcas were killing the grey whales, the humpbacks streamed in to try to help out.

[Dr. Who]

Anyway it is neat that when the Orcas were killing the grey whales, the humpbacks streamed in to try to help out.

It goes to show how sentient and self-aware they really are. They have a sense of justice.

[Common]

Sharks get the most attention because they attack humans. Killer whales kill everything

[Dr. Who]

Sharks get the most attention because they attack humans. Killer whales kill everything

They are the apex predator of the ocean.

[Green Arrow]

Nature is brutal, this world isn't pretty. Not a fan of it.

Why focus on the brutality of it? Yeah, there's plenty of brutality in this story - but let's not overlook the fact that humpbacks seem to have made it their duty to protect the much smaller prey. Why? They have no reason to do that.

Like with everything else, there is a duality of light and dark.

[Green Arrow]

It goes to show how sentient and self-aware they really are. They have a sense of justice.

Moreso than many humans...