Possible reasons for orcas attacking boats

Since 2020 there have been hundreds of incidents involving orcas (so-called killer whales) and boats. Some people have characterized these encounters as "orca attacks." Most of them have happened in the waters off the Iberian Peninsula, especially in and around the Strait of Gibraltar, a waterway between Spain and Morocco. 

In some cases orcas damaged boats by repeatedly ramming them and even breaking off their rudders, the boat's steering apparatus. People have been terribly frightened and, understandably, felt under attack. However, the fact remains that orcas in the wild have never attacked directly (much less eaten) humans. It is much more often the case that humans hurt orcas through accidental ship collisions, entangling them in abandoned fishing gear, or through acoustic damage caused by navy ships, explosions, or underwater mining operations.

Some commentators have sided with the orcas and others show more sympathy for the boats that they sometimes target. A recent article in the Atlantic by Jacob Stern has the ridiculous title “Killer Whales Are Not Our Friends: Stop rooting for orcas ramming boats.” While a Washington Post editorial, looking at the matter more from the whale's perspective, has the title "Why are orcas attacking boats? Hint: It’s not a war on humans.

The recent behavior of the orcas is unusual and seems to be something new. Scientists haven't found the reason for it but there are some theories. One theory is that after an orca that scientists called "White Gladis" was accidentally injured by a ship, she taught juvenile orca to attack every ship they came across. This theory isn't favored by marine biologists who study orca in depth. They think it's more likely that the orca are exhibiting playful behavior. 

Deborah Giles, the research director for the NPO Wild Orca, has noted that orca sometimes engage in short-lived "fads," like moving the anchors of crab pots, hitching rides with larger whales, swimming around with salmon on their heads, or, perhaps most recently, messing around with boats around the Iberian Peninsula. Deborah Giles believes that the orca will eventually get bored interfering with boats and move on to doing some other naughty behavior. 

Hopefully, those sailing boats through their waters will not try to get revenge on the orca. A simple way to stop attacks by the orca seems to be just stopping the boat's engine. Could it be that they are irritated by the engines of boats and want to send us a message, "We've had it with your noisy boats!"

Neiwert, D. (2023, June 19). Why are orcas attacking boats? Hint: It’s not a war on humans. Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/06/19/orca-attacks-sinking-boats-science/

O’Kane, C. (2023, May 26). Killer whales are ramming into boats and damaging them. The reason remains a mystery. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/killer-whales-attacking-boats-damaging-spain-portugal-reason/

Stern, J. (2023b, June 17). Killer Whales Are Not Our Friends. The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2023/06/orca-killer-whale-attacking-boats/674438/

Threats to whales other than whaling

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) is a very respected advocacy group which works to protect natural habitats and biodiversity. Therefore, I thought they would have a balanced view of the threats posed to whales other than whaling. It's important to look at non-whaling factors that may be threatening whales because they influence how vulnerable whales are and whether they should be better protected.

I found out that, in addition to whaling, whales are hurt by the following factors:

• getting caught in fishing gear (by-catch)
• climate change
• ship collisions
• toxic contamination
• oil and gas development
• habitat degradation

Whales, especially dolphins and porpoises (which are types of whales), get caught in nets accidentally when fishermen are trying to catch fish. This is called "by-catch." Since dolphins and porpoises need to breath air in order to live, they suffocate when they're caught in nets, so they can't just be thrown back into the sea.

Climate change is altering the whole ocean ecosystem and affecting the krill and other sea life that whales depend on to survive.

Fast moving ships sometimes strike whales and seriously injure or kill them. Some environmental groups want to impose lower speed limits on large ships, especially during critical whale migration periods.

Oil and gas development can hurt whales in various ways. For one thing, it releases toxic substances into the environment.

Finally, the natural habitat for whales is gradually degraded, partly by climate change and partly by the fact that the sea is getting more crowded with ships, pleasure craft, whale watching boats, oil rigs, etc.

According to the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (part of the National Ocean Service, NOAA in the US), because marine animals, such as whales and dolphins, make use of sound for communication, feeding, and navigation, acoustic (i.e., sound) disturbances caused by dredging, mining, military activities, or boat traffic may affect whales and their behavior. 

For all these reasons, whaling may be the additional threat to whales which sends some species into extinction. One of the reasons Japan and countries such as Norway and Iceland give for continuing to carry out whaling include the idea that ocean stocks of the whales they are catching are at "healthy" or sustainable levels. However, as we can see from all of the threats to whales and to all marine life (mentioned above), there is a cumulative negative effect on the various species and whaling can be the straw that, so to speak, breaks the whale's back. All the more reason to stop whaling immediately.

Threats to Whales | Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary. (2023). https://hawaiihumpbackwhale.noaa.gov/protect/threats.html

Threats to whales and dolphins. (n.d.). WWF. https://wwf.panda.org/discover/knowledge_hub/endangered _species/cetaceans/threats/

Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC). (2010, June 14). Against all odds - The threats to whales [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLRWJnxykts