The Latest Breaking News from Luke Rendell

How Orca Pods Pass Down Hunting Techniques Across Generations as Cultural Tradition

Every Pod Has Its Own PlaybookOff the coast of Patagonia, a group of orcas deliberately beach themselves on gravel shores to snatch sea lions, a technique so dangerous that calves spend years watching before attempting it, and one no other orca population performs the same way. In the waters off…

Times Life · Jul 15

Different sperm whale ‘dialects’ detected on separate sides of the Mediterranean

Matriarchal groups in east and west exhibit distinct click patterns, used to form social structures

The Guardian - UK · Jun 24

Chewed-up orca fins on Russian beach point to cannibalism, and scientists say it may explain why some pods are so tight-knit

Detached orca fins scored with distinctive tooth marks suggest that killer whale cannibalism is happening — and it might explain some complex orca societies.

LiveScience · Mar 4

Why Would Orcas Band Together To Sink Boats? A Marine Biologist Explains This Unusual Behavior

The lack of obvious fitness-enhancing rewards means this is unlikely to have evolved because it enabled the whales to survive better in their environment.

Inverse · May 28, 2023

Why are killer whales attacking boats? Expert Q&A

Orcas living off Europe’s Iberian coast recently struck and sunk a yacht in the Strait of Gibraltar. Scientists suspect that this is the third vessel this subpopulation of killer whales has capsized since May 2020, when a female orca believed to be the originator of this behaviour suffered a traumatic…

The Conversation · May 23, 2023

Orcas attack humpback whales in sea battle off Washington coast

“I’m still trying to wrap my head around it because it was absolutely unbelievable”

The Independent UK · Oct 3, 2022