Crew members on board two racing yachts were on the final leg of The Ocean Race, near the Strait of Gibraltar, when they were suddenly surrounded by killer whales.
One of the members then took the opportunity to film the entire incident – which is one in a series of attacks that have occurred in recent times.
– Some killer whales came towards us and started hitting the rudder. Impressive to see them, it’s a beautiful animal but it was a dangerous moment for us, says team JAJO member Jelmer van Beek.
Team JAJO from the Netherlands and Team Mirpuri/Trifork Racing from Portugal both reported encounters with killer whales around 3pm local time on Thursday. The Dutch team filmed the meeting both from the deck and underwater. According to Jelmer van Beek, it was a nasty situation.
– We took down the sails and braked the boat as quickly as possible, and luckily they disappeared after a few attacks. But this was a terrifying moment, he says shortly after the attack.
In the video, you can see how the killer whales approach Team JAJO’s yacht and then swim alongside the boat and under it.
No one was injured in the attack
The Portuguese team also reported encountering the killer whales. Both teams were quick to inform the race organizer that neither the crew nor the boats were injured in the attack.
“Fortunately, the orcas’ encounter with The Ocean Race boats today was brief and relatively benign, although it was undoubtedly scary,” organizers said in a statement on Thursday. reports ABC News.
The latest in a series of attacks
The incident is the latest in a series of ship-to-orca encounters off the coast of the Iberian Peninsula. Killer whales’ behavior towards ships has become increasingly common in recent months, puzzling scientists.
However, experts believe that the behavior may be a sign of play among the younger killer whales. According to Alfredo López, of the Grupo de Trabajo Orca Atlántica in Portugal, fishing lines thrown from the boats attract the killer whales to examine them.
He states, however, that it is the adult animals that attack the boats’ rudders, possibly because they “had a bad experience” with boats in the past, reports The Guardian.
Yacht rammed in the North Sea
Earlier this week, a killer whale repeatedly rammed a yacht in the North Sea off Shetland. It is the first time such an attack has been reported in waters further north.
Conor Ryan, scientific adviser to the Hebridian Whale and Dolphin Trust, believes the behavior can be transferred between killer whales despite the long distance.
– It is possible that this ‘fad’ jumps between the different groups, he says, writes The Guardian.
However, Alfredo López believes that it is the increased sea traffic, the lack of food, the warming of the oceans and noise that caused the new behavior.