Saturday, March 15, 2014

January's Orca video..


Video and pics made from the Condor on Jan 17th 2014 100nm South of SXM (St Maarten)

 We were looking for Andrew's 40ft Standfast which had been swept of its morning at St Barth 5 days before..  Coastguard had seen it from plane and given us position and a picture, looking fine, but after 4 days already drifted 140nm SW..... 

On pictures below u can clearly recognize a Humpback or Sperm Whale AND Orka's..  I think its Ma Sperm whale  and that they managed to tire baby/puppy Sperm whale and are now devouring it with (with Ma Whale not giving up) all 'friends' around who 'smelled it..  a lot and they kept coming in at great speed...

..Orca's&Whales Video seen from Condor Jan 17th... https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10202403035610443   Orka's after 1.55 minutes....  (and earlier if u look very good..)   For some reason video won't upload here..  sorry

NB  To see picture at full size..
1 Click on picture
2 Right click on 'mouse'
3 Click on View
4 Zoom in...      and u see lots of details..


On picture below u can clearly recognize a Humpback or Sperm Whale AND Orka's..  I think its Ma Sperm whale  and that they managed to tire baby/puppy Sperm whale and are now devouring it with (with Ma Whale not giving up) all 'friends' around who 'smelled it..  a lot and they kept coming in at great speed...













 We were looking for Andrew's 40ft Standfast which had been swept of its mooring at St Barth 5 days before..  Coastguard had seen it from plane and given us position and this picture, looking fine, but after 4 days already drifted 140nm SW..... 

....... Battle of Titans: Orcas take baby whale from his mom by force.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhREnyV44Y4

...... Astonishing rare Orca vs Sperm whales video explained...  http://newswatch.nationalgeographic.com/2013/04/30/astonishing-and-rare-orca-vs-sperm-whales-video-explained/


Orka's zijn gemakkelijk te herkennen: ze zijn van boven zwart, van onderen wit, en hebben een witte vlek net boven de ogen. Iedere orka heeft zijn eigen unieke patroon, dat net iets afwijkt van andere orka's, waardoor voor een geoefend oog herkenning en identificatie mogelijk wordt. Ze zijn vrij gedrongen van bouw en hebben een bijzonder opvallende rugvin (vandaar de naam zwaardwalvis), die tot 2 meter hoog kan zijn. Volwassen mannetjes zijn doorgaans 6,7 tot 8 meter lang (maximaal 9,75 meter) en wegen gemiddeld tussen de 4 en 6,3 ton (maximaal 10,5 ton). De vrouwtjes zijn iets kleiner, gemiddeld 5,7 tot 6,6 meter (maximaal 8,5 meter) lang, en gemiddeld 2,6 tot 3,8 ton zwaar (maximaal 7,4 ton).[2] Bij de geboorte zijn kalveren gemiddeld 2,4 meter lang en wegen 180 kilogram. De grotere mannetjes zijn in de groep herkenbaar aan hun hoge, spitse rugvin.
Klik Geluidsfragment hier (info / uitleg) voor het geluid dat een orka maakt.
Vrouwtjesorka's worden gemiddeld 50 jaar oud, maar kunnen ouder dan 80 worden. Mannetjes hebben een levensverwachting van ongeveer 30 jaar, maar er zijn gevallen van meer dan 50 jaar oude mannetjes bekend


 Orka's komen voor in bijna alle wereldzeeën, zowel in de tropen als in gematigde en koude wateren. Vanwege deze kosmopolitische distributie is het lastig een exact beeld van verspreiding en aantallen te krijgen. Orka's lijken vaker voor te komen nabij de kust, en lijken een voorkeur te hebben voor het koude water van de hogere breedtegraden, zowel in het Arctisch als in het Antarctisch gebied, met name het gebied dat globaal ligt tussen de 50e en de 70e breedtegraad.[4] Over migratie is weinig bekend. Van veel orka's die ieder jaar rond dezelfde tijd op dezelfde plaats worden gezien, is niet bekend waar ze de rest van het jaar zijn.[5]

from..   http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orka_%28dier%29


The killer whale (Orcinus orca), also referred to as the orca whale or orca, and less commonly as the blackfish, is a toothed whale belonging to the oceanic dolphin family. Killer whales are found in all oceans, from the frigid Arctic and Antarctic regions to tropical seas. Killer whales as a species have a diverse diet, although individual populations often specialize in particular types of prey. Some feed exclusively on fish, while others hunt marine mammals such as sea lions, seals, walruses, and even large whales. Killer whales are regarded as apex predators, lacking natural predators.
Killer whales are highly social; some populations are composed of matrilineal family groups which are the most stable of any animal species.[5] Their sophisticated hunting techniques and vocal behaviors, which are often specific to a particular group and passed across generations, have been described as manifestations of culture.[6]
The IUCN currently assesses the orca's conservation status as data deficient because of the likelihood that two or more killer whale types are separate species. Some local populations are considered threatened or endangered due to prey depletion, habitat loss, pollution (by PCBs), capture for marine mammal parks, and conflicts with fisheries. In late 2005, the "southern resident" population of killer whales that inhabits British Columbia and Washington state waters were placed on the U.S. Endangered Species list.
Wild killer whales are not considered a threat to humans,[7] although there have been cases of captives killing or injuring their handlers at marine theme parks.[8] Killer whales feature strongly in the mythologies of indigenous cultures, with their reputation ranging from being the souls of humans to merciless killers.


Killer whales are found in all oceans and most seas. Due to their enormous range, numbers, and density, distributional estimates are difficult to compare,[81] but they clearly prefer higher latitudes and coastal areas over pelagic environments.[82]
Systematic surveys indicate the highest densities of killer whales (>0.40 individuals per 100 km²) in the northeast Atlantic around the Norwegian coast, in the north Pacific along the Aleutian Islands, the Gulf of Alaska and in the Southern Ocean off much of the coast of Antarctica.[81] They are considered "common" (0.20–0.40 individuals per 100 km²) in the eastern Pacific along the coasts of British Columbia, Washington and Oregon, in the North Atlantic Ocean around Iceland and the Faroe Islands. High densities have also been reported but not quantified in the western North Pacific around the Sea of Japan, Sea of Okhotsk, Kuril Islands, Kamchatka and the Commander Islands and in the Southern Hemisphere off the coasts of South Australia, Patagonia, off the coast of southern Brazil and the tip of southern Africa. They are reported as seasonally common in the Canadian Arctic, including Baffin Bay between Greenland and Nunavut, and around Tasmania and Macquarie Island.[81] Information for offshore regions and tropical waters is more scarce, but widespread, if not frequent, sightings indicate the killer whale can survive in most water temperatures. They have been sighted, for example, in the Mediterranean, the Arabian Sea, the Gulf of Mexico and the Indian Ocean around the Seychelles.[81]
Probably the largest population lives in Antarctic waters, where they range up to the edge of the pack ice and are believed to venture into the denser pack ice, finding open leads much like beluga whales in the Arctic. In contrast, killer whales are seasonal summer visitors to Arctic waters, where they do not approach the ice pack. With the rapid Arctic sea ice decline in the Hudson Strait, their range now extends deep into the northwest Atlantic.[83]
Migration patterns are poorly understood. Each summer, the same individuals appear off the coasts of British Columbia and Washington. Despite decades of research, where these animals go for the rest of the year remains unknown. Transient pods have been sighted from southern Alaska to central California.[84] Resident killer whales sometimes travel as much as 160 km (100 mi) in a day, but may be seen in a general area for a month or more. Resident killer whale pod ranges vary from 320 to 1,300 kilometres (200 to 810 mi).
Occasionally, killer whales swim into freshwater rivers. They have been documented 100 mi (160 km) up the Columbia River in the United States.[85][86] They have also been found in the Fraser River in Canada and the Horikawa River in Japan.[85]

from..   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killer_whale

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