Oceanic dolphins

A harrowing story of orcas trapped in an icy prison off the coast of Japan has come to a happy ending. The dozen or so whales were spotted earlier this week near the island of Hokkaido, appearing to be enclosed by ice with no available way to help them. On Wednesday, however, officials reported that the orcas managed to successfully escape their predicament on their own.Forget Collars—There's a Kinder Way to Track Polar Bears in the ArcticThe tale began Tuesday morning, when a fisherman from the town of Raisu first…

A great white shark carcass that washed up near Portland, Australia, in October was killed and eaten by orcas, according to researchers who studied the fish’s remains.“Even AI Rappers are Harassed by Police” | AI UnlockedThe 16-foot shark was missing its midriff—a telltale sign that orcas were involved in its demise. But recent analysis of the carcass confirmed that orcas, also known as killer whales, were the culprits.Great white sharks (Carcharadon carcharias) are some of the most fearsome predators in the world’s…

Like the orcas before them, the bottlenose dolphins have had enough. This past weekend, local reports from Japan noted several incidents of dolphins attacking and injuring swimmers, even in shallow waters.Threads Needs These Five Missing Features to Be a Twitter KillerJapanese outlet The Asahi Shimbun reported this weekend that one swimmer in his 60s was rammed by a dolphin swimming in the shallows on a beach in Fukui Prefecture. The incident happened in the early morning on Sunday, and the man received bites to his hands…

It looks like baby talk isn’t just for humans. New research this week suggests that dolphin mothers also adopt a higher-pitched tone during certain forms of communication with their young. What is One Change Mark Zuckerberg Should Make to His Social Platforms? | Gizmodo InterviewBaby talk—also known as “mothese”—has been observed in just about every human culture and language. Though it’s most associated with mothers and their infants, even pet owners will practice a form of it with their cats or dogs. But according to…

Orcas in the Pacific Northwest are battling some kind of unknown skin disease, new research out this week suggests. The study found photographic evidence that these orcas have been developing more and more mysterious lesions over the years. It’s not clear yet how harmful this trend may be, but it’s the latest potential threat to the already endangered population in the area.Forget Collars—There's a Kinder Way to Track Polar Bears in the ArcticOrcas (Orcinus orca), also known as killer whales, are found throughout the…

Russia is ramping up its efforts in the Ukraine war by doubling the number of its pens holding trained dolphins near the Black Sea port of Sevastopol, the UK defense intelligence agency said on Friday. The British bureau’s satellites captured images of expanding enclosures it saidcontain bottle-nosed dolphins. Rare Polar Bear Attack in Canada | Extreme Earth“The implication is that dolphin patrols have increased in frequency and/or cover more area,” according to Naval News. “The marine mammals have an inherent advantage…

It’s been a big week (f)in orca news. The black and white cetaceans, often referred to as killer whales seem to be making some unexpected moves—popping up in numbers and places where they usually do not.Reddit Knowingly Downvoting Self | Future TechOn Sunday, a group of researchers—surveying the seas from a plane—spotted four whales just south of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, in an area where orca sightings are exceedingly rare, according to a New York Times report. Elsewhere in New England, a fishing crew noted…

PRYMORSKE, UKRAINE—This stretch of Black Sea coastline is almost deserted, save for a small hut, running entirely on solar power. About 50 kilometers across the blue water is Zmiinyi (Snake) Island, which two Russian warships attacked at the beginning of the invasion last year. It was during this attack that the now-ubiquitous phrase “Russian warship, go fuck yourself” was first-uttered by border guard Roman Hrybov. Ukraine reclaimed the island in June.Rare Polar Bear Attack in Canada | Extreme EarthThe clean, cold air…

There may be a totally non-violent reason that an orca near Iceland was spotted caring for a pilot whale calf. But given what we know of orcas—a species infamous for breaking the spines of dolphins and eating the livers of unlucky great white sharks—you’ll forgive us for being a little suspicious.Researchers studying orcas off the western coast of Iceland spotted one apparently raising a pilot whale calf as its own offspring. That’s a little weird. Pilot whales are ordinarily prey for the larger cetaceans, which are…