Stunned Swimmer Comes Face To Face With Two Curious Killer Whales
Imagine going out for a swim in the ocean, only to be greeted by a couple of killer whales! That's what happened to a New Zealand man, and he was lucky enough to capture it all on video. @Daily Mail shared the clip and his story on Monday, December 18th, and it's one of those stories that is both beautiful and terrifying at the same time.
The video starts by explaining that the man, Steve Morris, was out for a swim in the Bay of Plenty in New Zealand. As he finished up his outing, he noticed a pod of 8 orca close by. Not long after that, he noticed two of the whales swimming his way. One of the whales got to within an arm's length of him! While he seems to have remained calm, I'm sure he was trying to figure out what he should do next.
I am a huge lover of the ocean and would love to have this happen to me someday! It would be so scary and thrilling all at the same time, and for most of us, a once in a lifetime experience! @Daily Mail goes on to explain that while orcas are the apex predators of the ocean, they don't really pose a threat to humans. And based on this video, that seems to be correct. These killer whales just seemed to want to say hello to Steve, not eat him!
Related: Video of Orca Whales Playing Near the Shoreline in Washington Is a Must See
Commenters React to the Once-in-a-Lifetime Meeting
As you can imagine, people had a lot to say about Steve's encounter. @Matteo pointed out, "At least he knew there are definitely no sharks anywhere near him". @AYZxo shared, "Harmless or not I'd still have a heart attack and just die then and there LOL!" @inanimate_chopstick pointed out, "I'd honestly feel safer in this situation than in a large, populated shopping center" and I couldn't help but laugh at @narufma who said, "My toxic trait is wanting to pet the sea puppies"! Same here!
@AdoraBella Dearheart shared, "No orca in the wild has ever un-a-lived anyone. They’re very smart and curious creatures". I thought that was a pretty bold thing to say, and so I did a little research. Turns out, that's pretty accurate. I headed over to whalefacts.org and they said, "There have been very few cases of Orca attacks in the wild, and most marine biologists believe that in most cases, such attacks are a case of mistaken identity, where the dolphin initially identifies the human as a prey animal."
Sounds like these killer whales are just as curious about us as we are about them! I guess the takeaway here is that if you ever happen to run into a couple of orcas, remain calm and enjoy the fleeting moment. It's probably one that you'll never get to experience again!
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