The Orca Run - How to Avoid a Killer Whale Attack

In our latest film we go onboard with one of our skippers as they head through the area currently most at risk with Orcas. We show the strategy they use. If you were to sail through here, what would you do to minimise the risk?
#halcyonyachts #yachtdelivery #sailing #yachting #orcas

[@HalcyonGuitars]

I gotta say that if I ever managed to scrape together enough money for a boat, and managed to find a way to take enough time away from the shop to sail it into the Med, I would be righteously pissed if some bloody Shamu came along and ripped off my rudder…

[@zendesigner]

@@sleepstateaz9490 and you have voting rights, what a shame

[@jpdj2715]

I offered the hypothesis to a biologist well known with these orcas and the issues, that the orcas are training their whale hunting and/or shark hunting this way, teaching their offspring. Nature has no play for the sake of play and among carnivores play is rehearsal for the hunt and/or the kill. The biologist countered my hypothesis saying that this group does not hunt for whales or large sharks, but rather tuna. I would believe that, if the pod had been tracked for a couple years. Orcas are picky eaters in two ways: they only eat what their pod has always eaten (we know of no pods that eat humans and hence feel safe among them), and, they prefer to eat the brains and livers of their (large) prey animals (so humans may just be too insignificant a snack). As soon as a sailboat decides to fall motionless, the orcas lose interest. Note that indeed the underside of a boat may remind them of whales. Also note that the rudder of such boats may remind them of the (vertical) tail fin of sharks - orcas flip sharks upside down in order to turn them incapacitated (a weird fluke of evolution in sharks), and subsequently devour their liver and brain. Weighing up to 5,500 kg (males - well into the range of African bull elephants of 1,800..6,300), as fast in the water, relatively, as cheetahs on land, and as dangerous as a group as a pack of lions.

[@dgib1694]

That is a simplistic view of nature

[@ShinLeeChan]

If they want to train, they can simply hunt sharks without any problem, or just wait to spot one and do the job as they did until now. You use a human approach to the problem. If they were training for sharks, they'd teach first how to flip the boat upside down. But again, you forgot that they can identify every detail of an object or scan a body without even touching it. So they perfectly know what they are doing. Could be a play game or territorial behaviour. Since they won't tell us, we need to figure it out.

[@Mikeandlucy1]

Fortunately (or not) I will be taking my boat through the French canals rather than the sea route mainly because my wife doesn't like being on watch alone and coastal hopping all the way done takes ages. However, I have seen a few Orca attacks on KZbin and it looks scary. I did give it some thought and I reckon that if you lowered a waterproof speaker over the side and blasted out sounds it may well drive them off. I can imagine if you played some Lead Zepplin or really heavy metal stuff they would disappear pretty quick.

[@markthomasson5077]

Na, those bad boys just luv Zeplin

[@64Golfy]

Hopefully you may find the BBC article useful and some advice on how to avoid an interaction. 👍

[@craigwilliams4254]

It's all guess work, isn't it?

[@sailing9574]

Apparently you should have sand with you to throw in if they come close. It can scare them off. Has anyone tried that?

[@metheoneandonlyraider7220]

Rumor, haven't seen it yet on FB.

[@smulismuli7976]

There's somewhere a video of but it didn't work. I don't think you can carry meaningful amount of sand anyways in a normal pleasure boat and orcas are also protected.

[@ianscott3180]

I have read that throwing sand overboard can confuse the sonar that they use. How true this is I am not sure. I have not sailed down this coast for many years, the last time I was on my Contessa 26. I would not like to come under attack on one of those.

[@anotherelvis]

Also google for GenusWave acoustic deterrent device. (I haven't tried it myself though)

[@goingaboutmyfathersbusines4359]

I wonder if this is food related..has anyone tried to dump tuna when they come around to see if they will stop? Of course the danger in that is..if it works they will expect to be fed from boats..looks like a no win situation..but atleast ppl will know if its food related or not..

[@vaper106]

Boat owner are general better off than most but nobody can afford to dump tuna. 😂

[@user-bh1ue9kn4v]

Možná tak si vyžadují jídlo, co takhle zkusit jim hodit něco k jídlu?

[@anotherelvis]

So the strategy is: Sail close to the coast and keep watch.

[@seansheehan8430]

Have wondered why no boats have tried what we used to call cherry bombs or M80s we used to get for the 4th of July, waterproof and detonate 3 or 4 feet underwater deployed when Orcas are first sighted would likely run them off.

[@tonybarnes3858]

Probably for the same reason we don't throw M-80s at those redneck assholes who blast their deisel smokers at public intersections, or why we don't just bludgeon women protesting for reproductive rights. It isn't legal or morally right.

[@goingaboutmyfathersbusines4359]

I wonder if that is illegal..it may be banned..

[@USAPitbull]

Replace the core with ghost peppers and glass it in take that lol 😂

[@markthomasson5077]

Chili powder?

[@Halcyonyachts]

Is that a recipe suggestion or a deterrent?

[@ysesq]

they have no capascin receptors so chili powder is just food for them.

[@mboykin6047]

Do Orcas have any whales that prey on them, like sperm whales? What about recording the voices of sperm whales and broadcast them using hydrophones?

[@metheoneandonlyraider7220]

Humpbacks only tmk. But that is more of humpbacks fighting orcas. Humpbacks canteat orcas.

[@SuperDirk1965]

No they don't. that's why they're called apex predators.

[@guy.h]

Orcas kill whales - hence their nickname although these days the words are interchanged to killer whales rather than whale killers.

[@zoeventa7749]

I’m not sure that would be a good idea. Seeing how an Orca is called a killer whale, because they kill whales. The whales 🐳vocal recordings might bring Orcas to the boat! Even the largest whale (blue whale) is no match for a pod of Orca’s as long as they stay away from the whales fluke!

[@johan8724]

Maybe have a different hull colour under water, my guess is that they see the bottom of the boat as another whale turned on its back

[@chesterbloom]

You greatly underestimate their intelligence

[@johan8724]

@@chesterbloom no, i know they can learn tricks and habits quite easy like dogs but a small sailing boat with a dark hull under the water line looks a bit like a whale on its back with a fin keel and the rudder. If a whale is in for mating they swim on their backs i read somewhere. Not saying this is true but should be examined. What type and hull colour did the attacked boats have? I read that copper coloured antifauling was less prone to be attacked.

[@darlenedeluca7850]

N That is why, The Orca Killer whales r attacking, boat"s! I can"t blame, them at all!🤔🤫🐳🐋💞❣💯% ! They r very smart , n gorgeous !

[@DarkSevariant]

Sand...Pouring Sand on the Orcas, Drives Them Away.

[@steveburke7675]

Lol...not. I sailed for years in the PNW...both resident and transient Orcas. Orcas often go to a sandy beach and thrash around in the sand to remove parasites. They have no fear of sand what-so-ever...in fact they appear to enjoy it.

[@Halcyonyachts]

I believe it can help. The only trouble is that you often don't see them until after they have hit the rudder...

[@ianscott3180]

I have read that throwing sand can confuse the Orcas sonar.@@Halcyonyachts

[@tonybarnes3858]

So sorry for these wealthy yachties! They've run afoul of (gasp) the nature they can't control. Like we could in the halcyon days, do'nt you know.

[@tonybarnes3858]

Don't

[@zendesigner]

why does nobody cull them.? this behaviour will only get worse.

[@malu8653]

Because it is their habitat! Why did the natives tolerate your forfathers? Didn't they see, it will get worse?

[@SV-Flying-Tigress]

​@@malu8653I would respectfully suggest your "because it is their habitat" is incoherent, and shallow thinking. It is the ocra's *shared* habitat but not exclusively "their habitat". It is also the habitat of salmon, seal, shark, birds, dolphins and whales as well....all of which (and more) orcas interrupt while their target is going about its business and eat them alive (not to mention the odd moose/deer crossing PNW bays just trying to get to better forage). Do you disagree that every one of those creatures orcas target are being attacked in habitat had those target organisms have equal claim to? Why is it also the target creature's habitat.... because they LIVE there and do their thing there. In addition to the land and air, the sea is also the shared habitat of humans. Have you ever been on a boat in your life? Did you or your ancestors arrive in wherever you live by boat at some point, ever been on a cruise, are you wearing, driving, living around things that have been delivered by boat .... welcome to the party. If you were wading in the beach and a shark fastened on to your leg would you try to beat it off or just let it chew on you ....think about it. People on sailboats are going about their business specifically looking to AVOID orcas going about their but and certain, select orcas bring the attack...well it is the same thin as that shark, it is just chewing on somebody else, not you. They have have a right to defend that all creatures have... and they will use it....just like you would. That means that if orcas keep sinking boats (and they have sunk several so far) then eventually, a human is going to die and after that, in defense, an orca is going to die. Better to nip it in the bud and cull a single or as few as possible problem animals so the problem and culling that will follow doesn't spread.

[@yottiechick]

@@malu8653 is english your second language?

[@yottiechick]

I agree, somewhat, but ideally without killing this pod.. We should try to teach them that their behaviour is unacceptable to us. I do not know how we might go about this, but we should be doing something to investigate and test methods to make this extremely frightening and expensive and potentially life threatening behaviour by these orca come to an end.

[@malu8653]

@@yottiechick yes, my first language is whaleish! 🐳