ARE YOU MORE LIKELY TO SURVIVE AN ENCOUNTER WITH A SHARK OR AN ORCA?

By the numbers, white sharks are a lot more dangerous to humans than orcas are. Despite the name “killer whale,” there's only ONE well-documented instance of a wild orca attacking someone — Hans Kretschmer, who was bitten on the leg while surfing in California in 1972. Attacks by white sharks, although still rare, happen quite a bit more often; there are several hundred on record. Anually, there is an average of 72 attacks around the world, about 8% of them being fatel. While the thought of a shark attack is quite scary, there are alot more things that could hurt you. youre actually more likely to get killed by a bee than a shark.

SO WHY ARE KILLER WHALE ATTACKS SO RARE?

A big part of it is just that orcas don't encounter humans as often. Killer whales are found in all oceans, but they tend to be found in higher densities around cold, high-latitude regions, these are areas where the water is not particularly inviting for the average beachgoer! The 1972 orca attack was probably a case of mistaken identity, as is the case with many shark attacks.


“In an open water context, where all parties can view each other clearly, I would wager that both the shark and the killer whale are going to leave you alone.”


You dont have to spend long browsing to know that not only are killer whale attacks rarer than shark attacks, they're also rarer than cases of swimmers being attacked and bitten by other humans. In the ocean, you're more likely to be attacked and bitten by another person than by an orca.

WHAT ARE THEY THINKING?

Because sharks and orcas both spend most of their time hidden underwater, we often think of them in terms of their brief interactions with us — will they attack us or not? If the only two options are “Don't attack the human” and “Attack the human,” it's hard not to focus on the second one. After all, it's the second most likely option! But sharks and orcas aren't just hanging out down there deciding whether to attack us. Like the humans you pass on the street, they are mostly busy doing their own thing.

And in the case of orcas, one of the things they're busy doing is worrying about humpback whales.

HUMPBACK WHALE VS. ORCA?

For reasons that are unclear to scientists, humpback whales almost seem to have a vendetta against killer whales, as a 2016 paper in the journal Marine Mammal Science noted. All over the world, orcas trying to chase down food are routinely interrupted by out-of-the-blue humpback whale attacks. Humpbacks will band together and travel great distances to intervene in killer whale hunts, regardless of what the prey species is

The paper even documents cases of humpback whales seemingly lifting seals up out of the water and holding them out of reach of the orcas. The humpbacks stayed and protected the prey for hours, until the orcas were forced to go away hungry.

HUMPBACK HERO?

Why do humpbacks do this? Is this altruism? Game theory? Cross-mammal solidarity? A side-effect of their instinct to protect calves? Or do they just really hate orcas, for reasons known only to them? “It's hard to understand why it happens,” Ms. Luck said. “Especially because it's not limited to just one population of humpbacks. It happens all over the world.”

So if you do encounter a killer whale in the ocean, don't worry, it's unlikely to attack you. And if you're still worried … perhaps consider befriending a humpback.

Did You Know That?
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Did you know that stellar sea lions like to play with young humpback whales? They’ll swim around the whales when they come up for air and then wait for them when they go down to eat. The younger whales seem to love it, but their moms? Not so much.

(those little splashes you see are sea lions!)

WE NEED YOUR HELP...
Climate change is one of the biggest threats facing whales today.

Changes in sea temperature, freshening of seawater, acidification, rises in sea levels, the loss of icy polar habitats and the decline of food sources are just some of the many dangers which climate change poses for whales and dolphins.

Climate change is expected to be the main cause of mass extinctions in the 21st century and whales and dolphins are NOT immune. The rapid warming of the planet is leading to a loss of habitat for whales and dolphins and greater competition for a diminishing amount of prey species. It is affecting the timing and ranges of their migration, their distribution and even their ability to reproduce. Unless radical actions are taken, some whale and dolphin populations may not be able to adapt quickly enough to survive.

Learn More Here!
A future without sharks is a future with no ocean.

Sharks were once abundant in every part of the ocean. Some shark populations have declined by more than 90% in recent decades, many species have been decimated to near-extinction levels. Every year, more species are added to endangered species listings. The rampant overfishing of sharks is fueled by a hunger for one of the most profitable items one can steal from the sea - shark fins. After the fins are cut off, the shark is thrown back and left to die.

Sharks play an important role in some of the key challenges we are facing on planet Earth. Addressing climate change and food security, ending harmful fisheries, protecting biodiversity, ensuring sustainable economies. Sharks keep commercially viable fish species healthy.

“Like them or not, the ocean needs sharks, and we need the ocean”
— Stefanie Brendl, Shark Allies Founder

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The plastic problem

Billions of pounds of plastic can be found in swirling convergences that make up about 40 percent of the world's ocean surfaces. At current rates plastic is expected to outweigh all the fish in the sea by 2050.

In the first decade of this century, we made more plastic than all the plastic in history up to the year 2000. Every year, billions of pounds of plastic end up in the world's oceans. There are now between 15-51 trillion pieces of plastic in the world's oceans.Not one square mile of surface ocean anywhere on earth is free of plastic pollution.

Fish in the North Pacific ingest 12,000 to 24,000 tons of plastic each year, causing intestinal injury and death, transfering plastic up the food chain to bigger fish, marine mammals and human seafood eaters. Fish at markets in California were found with plastic in their guts, mostly in the form of plastic microfibers.Whale have been found dead with bellies full of plastic.

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Adopt a Whale

When you adopt a whale, you help save the whales that keep our ocean and earth healthy!

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