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The orca (Orcinus orca), or killer whale, is a toothed whale and the largest member of the oceanic dolphin family. It is the only extant species in the genus Orcinus and is recognizable by its black-and-white patterned body. A cosmopolitan species, it is found in diverse marine environments, from Arctic to Antarctic regions to tropical seas.
Type A or Antarctic orcas look like a "typical" orca, a large, black-and-white form with a medium-sized white eye patch, living in open water and feeding mostly on minke whales. [ 2 ] [ 4 ] Type B1 or pack ice orcas are smaller than type A. [ 4 ] It has a large white eye patch.
The genus Orcinus was published by Leopold Fitzinger in 1860, [4] its type species is the orca named by Linnaeus in 1758 as Delphinus orca.Taxonomic arrangements of delphinids published by workers before and after Fitzinger, such as John Edward Gray as Orca in 1846 and Orca (Gladiator) in 1870, are recognized as synonyms of Orcinus.
Female orcas can live up to 90 years, and male orcas live up to 60 years. Whales can communicate through sounds ranging from clicks, whistles and pulsed calls. These loveable creatures are highly ...
Orca show at SeaWorld San Diego. Orcas, or killer whales, are large predatory cetaceans that were first captured live and displayed in exhibitions in the 1960s. They soon became popular attractions at public aquariums and aquatic theme parks due to their intelligence, trainability, striking appearance, playfulness in captivity and sheer size. [1]
The orcas will remain at Marineland while their fate is decided, she added, with public pressure increasing. “It’s incredible how many people are mobilizing around this,” Arnal said.
The southern resident orcas, also known as the southern resident killer whales (SRKW), are the smallest of four communities of the exclusively fish-eating ecotype of orca in the northeast Pacific Ocean. The southern resident orcas form a closed society with no emigration or dispersal of individuals, and no gene flow with other orca populations. [1]
The shallowness of orca tanks forces orcas to spend a lot of time at the surface, where they are exposed to ultraviolet (UV) rays. Sunburns and the development of cataracts in orcas in captivity are attributed to this exposure. Orcas in the wild live at higher latitudes, meaning less intense sun, and spend more time in deeper, darker waters. [99]