4 ms·
It's not just that they don't eat us, it's also that they haven't killed us for other reasons. For example, a human happening to stray close to a young orca mi
by azakai 11y ago
It's not just that they don't eat us, it's also that they haven't killed us for other reasons.
For example, a human happening to stray close to a young orca might be confused as a threat to it, which could trigger an attack by a parent. Yet, despite there being lots of orcas in the ocean, no violent altercation between a wild orca and a human has led to a human death.
That this hasn't happened even once is remarkable, especially given the massive size and strength of orca. Other large mammals often kill humans, and not just as food, for example, hippos.
I don't think we know exactly why orcas have never killed humans, but I would guess their intelligence has something to do with it.
- Tiktaalik 11y agoOne explanation could be that Orcas and Humans simply don't come in contact that often. Orcas are common where I live in British Columbia, but you really don't have that many swimmers around in contrast to tropical areas. Additionally, the local resident orcas eat salmon and I don't think they'd consider humans to be a potential food source. Transient orcas eat seals, and I could imagine them confusing a human with a seal just as great white sharks do. Maybe the migration patterns of transient orcas don't line up with when and where people swim.
- azakai 11y agoThat's certainly a factor. However, orca are not limited to cold climates, even if they are found more there. Their natural range includes all oceans, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killer_whale#Range_and_habitat https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killer_whale#Range_and_habitat and they can encounter humans not just when the humans are swimming - which is rare in cold climates - but also when they are fishing. Furthermore, there are also practically no cases of other dolphins than orca killing humans, and human-dolphin encounters are not that rare. For example, even in the times of ancient Greece, dolphins were known and considered very friendly, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolphin#In_history_and_religion https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolphin#In_history_and_religio... Other dolphins are of course significantly smaller than orca, but still very powerful when in the water. I don't think there is an obvious answer for why wild orca have never been seen killing a human, and practically no other dolphin either. It's an interesting mystery.
- Tiktaalik 11y agoAn additional reason could be how they find they prey. I’ve read that most of the time shark attacks are somewhat accidental with the shark biting to find out what something is, but not continuing the attack. It could be that the echolocation abilities of toothed whales provides them with a superior ability to discern a human from their typical favoured prey and they don't make mistakes. It would be ambitious for a dolphin to kill a large animal like a human and that’s since that’s not their typical hunting behaviour, I can understand why dolphin attacks are not common. On other hand an transient orca would often eat human sized animals. Even if I’m right that echolocation would allow an orca to discern between a seal and a human, why wouldn’t they give the human a bite to see if they tasted any good? It is pretty weird mystery that there have been no recorded attacks on humans.
- pbhjpbhj 11y agoPerhaps humans smell bad.
- vijayr 11y agoAre hippos a good example? They are crazy territorial, have a nasty temper and will take on any animal that stray into their area. Orcas aren't territorial.