Why are orcas gifting food to humans across the oceans?

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6 days ago

Over two decades, orcas have been observed offering prey to humans in 34 recorded encounters across the globe. From stingrays to sea turtles, killer whales appear to gift food, then wait and watch. Scientists now believe this rare and deliberate behaviour reveals complex social intent, curiosity and possibly interspecies connection read more
Orcas come up for air in the Norwegian Sea, Norway, January 3, 2024. File Image/Reuters
A newly published study has shed light on an unusual and rarely seen behaviour in killer whales (Orcinus orca): voluntarily presenting dead prey to humans.
Over a span of 20 years, researchers documented 34 such interactions, offering the first scientific insight into a phenomenon that has perplexed and intrigued marine biologists.
These incidents, observed off the coasts of California, New Zealand, Norway, Canada and Patagonia, involved orcas approaching humans either in the water, on boats, or near the shore, and intentionally delivering items such as fish, birds, rays or marine mammals.
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The study was published in the Journal of Comparative Psychology and authored by scientists from Canada, New Zealand and Mexico, including Jared Towers, executive director of the Canadian research organisation Bay Cetology, who also witnessed several of these encounters firsthand.
How a unique behavioural pattern emerged across oceans
The research team compiled records of orcas approaching humans without prompting, either by swimmers, boaters or shore observers.
In total, 11 instances involved individuals in the water, 21 were from boats and two occurred onshore. Remarkably, in all but one event, the whales lingered near the humans after dropping the prey, apparently observing what would happen next.
The food offerings included 18 different species, among them stingrays, seals, birds, otters, jellyfish, starfish, grey whale blubber and even sea turtles and seaweed.
Some encounters were captured on video; others were described in interviews with eyewitnesses and scientists.
In seven cases, when the initial offering was declined or ignored, the orcas attempted the gesture again, sometimes multiple times. In three recorded incidents, when humans returned the prey to the whale, the whale again delivered it back.
Among the more striking cases was a young male orca in New Zealand named Funky Monkey, who repeatedly approached a researcher with a stingray balanced on his head.
In Norway, a whale appeared to offer jellyfish to a diver. Jared Towers himself was approached in 2015, while documenting a pod feeding on seabirds in Alert Bay, Canada.
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Two orcas — Akela and her younger brother Quiver — each brought him a dead bird, dropped it nearby, and stayed close before retrieving their prey and swimming away.
Another such encounter occurred in 2018, when a young female delivered a harbour seal pup.
Behind the orcas' behaviour
The orcas involved were all generalist predators, typically hunting a wide variety of surface-dwelling marine animals.
Researchers noted that no such behaviour was observed in deep-feeding orca groups that exclusively eat fish, even though those populations are also accustomed to human presence. This distinction may be key to understanding the emergence of this practice.
A killer whale member of the Bigg's orca T65B pod is seen in the Salish Sea near Eastsound, Washington, US, July 7, 2023. File Image/Reuters
According to the research, generalist orca pods often work together to take down large prey, sometimes leaving them with more food than they can consume.
In such scenarios, there's an opportunity to either discard, play with, or repurpose the excess prey.
'Orcas often share food with each other — it's a prosocial activity and a way that they build relationships with each other,' said Towers. 'That they also share with humans may show their interest in relating to us as well.'
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The study highlights that food-sharing among orcas is common within pods and may function as a social bonding mechanism. Extending this behaviour towards humans could reflect an adaptation or extension of those social instincts.
Notably, the research also suggests these food offers might allow the whales to engage in exploratory behaviour, or 'practise learned cultural behaviour' in new, interspecies contexts.
What orca history tells us
Killer whales are known for their sophisticated social behaviours, language dialects and cultural traditions.
In the wild, they have been observed gently interacting with one another through gestures like nibbling each other's tongues or synchronised swimming, suggesting high levels of social cohesion and communication.
This is not the first time that orcas have worked in concert with humans. Historical records show that orca pods once cooperated with Indigenous Australian and European whalers, helping them corral baleen whales in exchange for access to their meat and tongues.
However, that was a mutualistic relationship with clear benefit for the orcas. The events described in this new study are different — the orcas are giving away food without any visible incentive or gain.
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Towers and his colleagues suggest that such interactions may indicate generalised altruism — actions that benefit another being without direct benefit to oneself.
The presence of such behaviours could also hint at theory of mind — the ability to attribute mental states, like intentions or desires, to others.
'They're actively learning about us by testing the waters,' Towers explained. 'Curiosity is one of the things that reduces uncertainty.'
Are orcas forming bonds with humans?
In many of the encounters, the animals seemed interested in observing human reactions and often re-engaged when ignored, suggesting a deeper purpose. However, scientists also caution that manipulation cannot be ruled out, though it's unclear what goal that manipulation would serve.
'This behaviour may represent some of the first accounts of a wild predator intentionally using prey, and other items, to directly explore human behaviour,' the study authors noted.
The researchers believe the act of gifting may provide short- or long-term emotional or intellectual benefits to the animals, adding, 'none of which are mutually exclusive.'
The study concludes that given orcas' high intelligence, strong social ties, and cooperative nature, it is plausible that these food-sharing behaviours could be tied to cognitive experimentation, curiosity or even an attempt to understand humans better.
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With inputs from agencies