Orcas: Killer Beauties - Diet and Feeding Habits

The Orcas are the top predators of the ocean. The Orcas are active predators. They are opportunists eaters, their diet varies of one from region to another one. In the Antarctic, the Orcas eats about 67% of fish, 27% of marine mammals, and 6% of squids. The Orcas of the Bearing Sea (near Alaska), eats about 65% of fish, 20% squids, and 15% of marine mammals.

The eating preferences of resident and transitory groups in the North Pacific differ. They eats different varieties of fish, They eat a variety of fish, including salmon, cod, flatfish, hake, herring, and smelt and sharks among others. They also eat other marine mammals and seabirds. Killer whales prey on both Mysticeti and Odontoceti whales, seals, sea lions, walruses, and occasionally sea otters and penguins.

The food relation / weight of and what an adult Orca eats, is approximately from 3% to 4% of the their body weight per day. Fully weaned calves can eat up to approximately 10% of their body weight during growth period.

Like the wolves and the lions, the Orcas frequently hunt cooperatively, in groups, in order to obtain their food. They work together to corner and to accumulate their prey in a small area before the final attack; when they start to hit the water with their tail, in an attempt to confuse their prey.

The Orcas can jump on icebergs or sand banks to persecute their prey. Also they can swim between icebergs to take its prey on the surface of the water. They don chew their food. They swallow their food whole or tear it into large chunks.

An Orca begins to corner a fish pod in order to help the rest of her group to hunt the fishes. when the group is ready, then they begins to swim trough the fish pod with their mouths open getting all the food they can take.

Transient pods however, prefer other whales and some dolphins instead of fishes. This groups where the ones who gave the orcas, their "Killer Whale" name and reputation, because they had be seen doing this more frequently.