Further insights into killer whales Orcinus orca preying on white sharks Carcharodon carcharias in South Africa

Abstract

Photography and video footage, captured by researchers and tourists on board two vessels, provided insights into the predation techniques employed by an adult male killer whale Orcinus orca in Mossel Bay, South Africa. The incapacitation of its prey, a juvenile white shark Carcharodon carcharias (∼2.5 m TL), followed by consumption of the liver, occurred within less than 2 minutes, highlighting the predator proficiency of the killer whale. Notably, another adult male killer whale, and constant traveling companion with the first, was observed approximately 100 m away and was not involved during the predation. The following day a second carcass of a different eviscerated white shark (3.55 m TL) washed ashore in the vicinity, indicating that at least two white sharks may have been killed during the interaction.