Orcas left bite marks on an endangered whale
A 46-foot-long endangered fin whale was found dead on a beach in Oregon this week, according to CBS News.
NOAA Fisheries West Coast conducted an investigation and found that the whale was not fully grown and was likely ill before its death. Officials reported that it was entangled in some sort of rope and had bite marks from orcas known as “rake marks.”
According to CBS News, a fin whale is “a form of baleen whale, meaning their mouths are filled with keratin-based baleen rather than teeth, allowing them to filter small prey from the water.”
What are ‘rake marks’ from orcas?
Rake marks are specific bite marks that occur when orcas bite other species amid rough play or shows of aggression, per CBS News.
The recent discovery is not the first time a fin whale had been found with rake marks.
According to Business Insider, another fin whale washed up on California’s shoreline with rake marks along its fins in 2023. Michael Milstein from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shared with Business Insider at the time that the whale most likely beached itself to avoid the orcas.
“Killer whales are not all that common off Southern California but a group of about a dozen have been marauding along the coast, mainly preying on dolphins,” Milstein said to Business Insider.
What else have orcas been doing in the wild?
Another orca-related phenomenon that has been getting headlines lately is orcas ramming into boats out at sea. According to NBC News, these incidents have been rising in frequency since 2020.
According to Business Insider, there have been hundreds of reports of whales bumping into boats and some even ripping off boat rudders.
But orcas have not been attacking humans, per NBC News. Instead, the orcas are most likely just playing around.
In recent years, scientists have also noticed that orca hunting patterns have changed.
NBC News reports that orcas have started hunting great white sharks and eating only the livers.
More whales have been washing up on shore
ABC News reports that scientists are concerned about the number of whales that have died in the past few decades. There have been hundreds of whales found dead on shore since 2016.
One reason scientists think is causing these deaths is the change in their diet. According to ABC News, North Atlantic right whales have been forced to change their migratory paths because zooplankton’s life cycles have been impacted by global warming.
NBC News reports that gray whales haven’t been getting as many nutrients from the shrimp-like creatures they feed on due to the fluctuating sea ice in the Arctic, where the whales primarily feed.
