Reuters reports:
Killer whales severely damaged a sailing boat off the coast of southern Spain, the local maritime rescue service said on Thursday, adding to dozens of orca attacks on vessels recorded so far this year on Spanish and Portuguese coasts. In the early hours of Thursday, a group of orcas broke the rudder and pierced the hull after ramming into the Mustique on its way to Gibraltar, prompting its crew of four to contact Spanish authorities for help, a spokesman for the maritime rescue service said.
According to the research group GTOA, which tracks populations of the Iberian orca sub-species, the incident follows at least 20 interactions this month alone in the Strait of Gibraltar between small vessels and the highly social apex predators. Earlier in May, the sailing yacht Alboran Champagne suffered a similar impact from three orcas half a nautical mile off Barbate. The ship could not be towed as it was completely flooded and was left adrift to sink.
Read the full article. This feels like the opening to a movie about an animal uprising. Shamu’s Revenge: This Time It’s Personal. Watch the clips.
Killer whales severely damaged a sailing boat off the coast of southern Spain, the local maritime rescue service said on Thursday, adding to dozens of orca attacks on vessels recorded so far this year on Spanish and Portuguese coasts. https://t.co/v7PEDGU207
— Reuters Science News (@ReutersScience) May 25, 2023
Killer whales wreck boat in latest attack off Spain https://t.co/KK8fYD71IJ
— The Globe and Mail (@globeandmail) May 25, 2023
WATCH: Killer whales ram vacationing couple relaxing on boat in hour-long attack. https://t.co/pEUojMPyOX pic.twitter.com/hMdMBQG8jn
— Fox News (@FoxNews) May 21, 2023
Now this is a story. Multiple reports that killer whales are working together to attack small boats off the coast of Spain & Portugal. Its believed it all started after one Orca had an accident with a boat or fishing net (who then taught the others to attack) pic.twitter.com/8WMIbs6R0F
— James Withers (@JamesRWithers) May 25, 2023