Wounded young sea creature spotted after mom likely saved it from orca attack. See it
A young sea creature was spotted swimming off the California coast after surviving an orca attack, “epic” video shows.
Fresh wounds that look like teeth marks are clearly visible on what remains of the young humpback whale’s tail as it swims alongside its mother — who likely protected her calf from the attack, experts said.
“It looks like this young one survived a killer whale attack, as you can see in the video clip that this whale has raw wounds and most of its fluke chewed off,” Monterey Bay Whale Watch said July 13 on Facebook.
“While Killer Whales preying on Humpbacks has never been documented off California, it has been documented in Mexican waters by a different population of Killer Whales than we see in California,” the group said. “The Killer Whales in Mexico are referred to as ETPs (Eastern Tropical Pacific, and they have been documented hunting everything from Mobula Rays to Bottlenose Dolphins to Whale Sharks and even Humpback Whale Calves!”
“It looks like mom did a successful job at protecting her baby,” the group added. “We hope that this young whale will grow up big and strong and continue to visit Monterey Bay each year!”
Humpback whale calves are about 13 to 16 feet when they’re born, and they stay with their mothers for up to a year before weaning, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Several people shared well wishes for the young whale in the comments.
“Epic video, hopefully baby heals and has … a long healthy life,” a person wished.
Some shared horror stories of seeing killer whales kill baby humpbacks in other parts of the world.
“The circle of life is often hard to watch,” someone said. “Cool this one survived!”
