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That second video with the snorkelers sidling up to the orcas while they're attacking/feeding -- I know orcas have no record of attacking humans, but that's jus

That second video with the snorkelers sidling up to the orcas while they're attacking/feeding -- I know orcas have no record of attacking humans, but that's just a no^100 for me. Who's to say they won't get a little rambunctious in their glee at feeding and use one of the swimmers as a chew toy? Or decide that we might taste funny, but would make an interesting palette cleanser? In some parts of Africa, lions don't usually target humans, but you don't see researchers walking up to lions taking out a zebra like that.

hnbear 2y ago
Even within humans it’s socially unacceptable to walk up to people you don’t know you are eating and strike up conversation, eg in a restaurant. Disturbing eating is a pretty broad no-no across the animal kingdom. Then again, if the orca wanted you dead, could easily grab you from below in its mouth and pull you down. You’d be dead in 2 mins without much fuss. They’re smart enough to know how to target the right bits. They target baby whales in similar ways, holding them down to drown them. Would be a lot more targeted and cleaner than a shark attack. If they just held a human down might not leave much evidence it was an orca at all.
echelon 2y ago
Orca are known to eat moose and caribou. If an orca was hungry and a human presented an opportunity, it might not end well for the human. Just because we have no evidence of humans being eaten by orca does not mean we're off the menu. It's like the pop-sci adage that "sharks don't eat humans". It's a wildlife conservation meme that is just not true. While sharks evolved to predate certain classes of prey, they're also opportunistic. Even though our nutrient density and anatomical profile might not match a typical meal, sharks will still eat us. Tiger sharks are notorious for this.
- hackeraccount 2y ago
  Watch some of https://www.youtube.com/@TheMalibuArtist https://www.youtube.com/@TheMalibuArtist I mean these are Great Whites for the most part not Tiger sharks but ... man, I honestly believe that ever single Great White attack was a mistake on the sharks part. And even for non-humans - there's a great video in there of 4 or 5 sharks all circling a dead or dying seal. One by one they all get in close and then one by one they all take a pass. The seal later washed up on the beach not touched by any shark. The guy behind the video speculated that the seal was poisoned by eating fish infected with a red-tide type bacteria - the sharks just won't touch seal like that.

hnbear 2y ago

Even within humans it’s socially unacceptable to walk up to people you don’t know you are eating and strike up conversation, eg in a restaurant. Disturbing eating is a pretty broad no-no across the animal kingdom. Then again, if the orca wanted you dead, could easily grab you from below in its mouth and pull you down. You’d be dead in 2 mins without much fuss. They’re smart enough to know how to target the right bits. They target baby whales in similar ways, holding them down to drown them. Would be a lot more targeted and cleaner than a shark attack. If they just held a human down might not leave much evidence it was an orca at all.

echelon 2y ago

Orca are known to eat moose and caribou. If an orca was hungry and a human presented an opportunity, it might not end well for the human. Just because we have no evidence of humans being eaten by orca does not mean we're off the menu. It's like the pop-sci adage that "sharks don't eat humans". It's a wildlife conservation meme that is just not true. While sharks evolved to predate certain classes of prey, they're also opportunistic. Even though our nutrient density and anatomical profile might not match a typical meal, sharks will still eat us. Tiger sharks are notorious for this.

hackeraccount 2y ago
Watch some of https://www.youtube.com/@TheMalibuArtist https://www.youtube.com/@TheMalibuArtist I mean these are Great Whites for the most part not Tiger sharks but ... man, I honestly believe that ever single Great White attack was a mistake on the sharks part. And even for non-humans - there's a great video in there of 4 or 5 sharks all circling a dead or dying seal. One by one they all get in close and then one by one they all take a pass. The seal later washed up on the beach not touched by any shark. The guy behind the video speculated that the seal was poisoned by eating fish infected with a red-tide type bacteria - the sharks just won't touch seal like that.