From the Strait of Gibraltar to the coast of Galicia in the north of Spain, sailing yachts are in recent times attacked by orcas. The attacks are so fierce that the crews have sent out distress signals. The immense mammals damaged the ships, in two cases the ship lost the rudder blade and at least one crew member was injured.
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Last Friday, an 11-meter British yacht was attacked after heading for England from A Coruna. The orca rammed the stern at least 15 times. The ship became rudderless and had to be towed to port.
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A week and a half earlier, a French ship sent a distress signal to the coast guard that it was under attack by the immense marine mammals. On the same day, a Spanish yacht lost its helm in a similar attack.
At the end of July, a ship at Cape Trafalgar was surrounded by nine orcas. For an hour they banged on the rudder, the ship was pushed around and the engine was damaged while the animals communicated loudly with each other. Crew member Victoria Morris states that the attack was “fully orchestrated”. Earlier that week, another ship was attacked for nearly an hour, nearly dislocating the helmsman’s shoulder. The night before, according to the skippers, a British yacht was brought to an abrupt halt, turned around and lifted slightly out of the water. Another skipper reports that his ship was also attacked and lifted earlier that evening. That ship was pushed back and forth adrift for fifteen minutes.
Researchers are puzzled. Killer whales more often follow ships but attacks of this level are rare and certainly not at this frequency. Killer whales are highly intelligent animals and the attacks appear to be ‘organized’. Researchers consider it highly likely that it is always the same group of orcas. The animals may feel threatened.
Bioloog Alfredo López explains in The Observer that orcas migrate from the Gulf of Cadiz to the Bay of Biscay every September to hunt for tuna.
Radio notice in Rías Bajas for sighting of killer whales in the area. Vessels are requested not to try to approach, give ample shelter and report. A French sailboat and another from the Navy have already suffered attack without major damage #SecurityNautica (photo not related to the case) pic.twitter.com/QmHdxAKHKZ
– MARITIME SALVATION (@salvamentogob) August 31, 2020
The Spanish coast guard advises skippers to stay away from orcas, but the question is whether this is possible in practice. Ships now warn each other when the animals are spotted.
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cc-photo: Robin Agarwal
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