ON December 26, 2014, the Sea Shepherd ship, Bob Barker, encountered a pod of rare, “Ecotype D” Orcas while passing between the Crozet and Kerguelen archipelagos in the South Indian Ocean, in pursuit of the toothfish poaching vessel, Thunder.
The encounter was photographed and filmed, and images of the encounter were forwarded to Marine Ecologist and (Antarctic) Orca expert, Robert L. Pitman, of Southwest Fisheries Science Center of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra tion in the United States, for review.
Mr. Pitman examined the photographs and confirmed that these were, “definitely a Type D Killer whale,” adding, “I don’t think they have ever been filmed alive.”
First identified in 1955 when a pod stranded on Paraparaumu Beach, New Zealand, the Ecotype D Orca is characterised by large bulbous foreheads, similar to those of Pilot whales, and tiny post-ocular eye markings.
Following the 1955 stranding, this type of Orca was not seen again for almost 50 years. It is believed that there have been approximately 13 sightings to date, including the most recent sighting by the Bob Barker crew.
Bob Barker Chief Engineer, Erwin Vermeulen, was one of the crewmembers who photographed the encounter. He recounts, ”The crew watched in awe as the 13 killer whales, including a small juvenile and a large male, used the six-metre swell to surf across the bow. For almost an hour the surf-show continued and was accompanied by bow riding, tail-slaps and breaches.”
DNA retrieved from the 1955 stranding revealed that Ecotype D’s genetic differences point at a divergence from other Orcas about 390,000 years ago. This makes Ecotype D the second oldest Orca type, and second most genetically divergent.
Determining how many species of Orcas there are is critically important to establishing conservation measures and to better understand the ecological role of this apex predator in the world’s oceans.
You can view the video here: http://youtu.be/i7fLDYT0PM0
Ryan Fritz
Ryan Fritz started The Advocate in 2014 to provide not-for-profits and charities another media platform to tell their worthwhile hard news stories and opinion pieces effortlessly. In 2020, Ryan formed a team of volunteer journalists to help spread even more high-quality stories from the third sector. He also has over 10 years experience as a media and communications professional for not-for-profits and charities and currently works at Redkite, a childhood cancer charity.
