Boaters spot orcas ‘zig zagging’ in California. Then came a ‘jaw dropping’ attack
A group of boaters got a front-row seat to a “jaw dropping” moment in California when a group of killer whales attacked a “large” sea lion.
The boaters first spotted the “rarely seen” predators zig zagging “in about 150 feet of water,” Monterey Bay Whale Watch wrote in a Dec. 13 Facebook post. That’s when the orcas started leaping from the water — they were hunting a sea lion.
“Then all of a sudden, multiple whales started porpoising out of the water, hunting a sea lion! There were multiple breaches and tail slaps happening,” the tour agency said in its post. “They did successfully predate on a sea lion and fed on that one for several minutes.”
An hour after the first attack, the whales started hunting again, the post said. This time, they were after a “very large male sea lion.”
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“Once again, they started tail throwing, porpoising, and breaching during the hunt. They did successfully predate on the male sea lion and prey shared among each other,” the agency wrote.
Drone footage shows the orcas attacking, and photos show them breaching and swimming in the bay.
“While it may seem very sad to watch it’s a very important part of nature and the ecosystem and it’s also very important documentation (especially from the drone) for researchers who study these animals,” the agency wrote in another Dec. 13 post.
After the second attack, the whales “started traveling very fast to the northwest,” according to the agency.
“What an absolutely amazing day,” experts with the agency said.
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