A POD of sperm whales recently used a strange “poop” defense against orcas, scientists observed.
Scientists have long known that orcas are skilled hunters who can take down prey much larger than themselves.
But a new revelation reveals that sperm whales have a surprising defense mechanism against these ocean predators: poop.
Scientists have recently observed an incident in which a pod of sperm whales fended off an orca attack by releasing a cloud of feces.
The phenomenon was observed off the southern coast of Western Australia on Tuesday, March 19.
“It’s called defense defecation,” said Jennah Tucker, a marine biologist with Oceans Blueprint.
Tucker was on the charter boat during the tourist excursion in Bremer Canyon.
When the animals defecate, she said, they pass their huge tails through their poop to drive away or confuse attackers.
Scientists said they rarely get to observe such a defense mechanism in the wild.
In this instance, the “diarrhea pool” helped the sperm whale pod escape from the nearly 30 orcas.
To carry out the poop attack, the pod formed a circle with their heads together and fanned their tails in sync.
“This is called a rosette, another defensive mechanism they use when they’re under attack,” Tucker said.
“Because [a] sperm whale’s diet consists mostly of squid, they actually have this really reddish-colored poo,” she explained.
Tucker told ABC in Australia that despite the sperm whales being tired, their defense mechanism worked.
It’s uncommon for orcas to attack sperm whales given their size difference.
Adult male orcas can grow to a length of approximately 27 feet, whereas females grow to around 23 feet.
Orcas – a quick guide to killer whales
Here’s what you need to know…
- Orcas – in Latin, Orcinus orca – are also known as killer whales
- These toothed whales are the largest members of the oceanic dolphin family
- They’re apex predators and feed on a varied diety that includes fish, seals, sharks, and even other whales
- You can find orcas in many places around the world, right from the Arctic to the Antarctic
- They are large creatures: males typically range between 20 and 26 feet long, with females ranging from 16 to 23 feet
- A male orca typically weights over six tonnes, while a female would weigh between three to four tonnes
- Killer whales will typically live in family pods, group with up to 50 orcas
- They’ll hunt in packs, with pods typically focusing on a single type of animal
- Despite their scary name, killer whales rarely attack humans in their natural habitat – with no fatal incidents recorded
- However, captive orcas have attacked humans at multiple times in recent history, resulting in several fatalities
- Orcas are considered to be intelligent creatures, and have the second-heaviest brains of any marine mammal (after sperm whales)
Meanwhile, male sperm whales can reach lengths of 60 feet and smaller females around 37 feet.
Besides their dominance in size, sperm whales are also supreme divers.
Because of this, there have been only a few documented instances of orcas going after sperm whales.
“Sperm whales are considered an apex predator, and historically, it was thought that they were pretty much immune to killer whale attacks,” Tucker said.
“It’s actually pretty adventurous for orcas to try to take on sperm whales. They’re punching above their weight.”
Sperm whales are not the only creatures that use fecal matter to ward off predators.
The strange defense mechanism has been utilized by several other animal species.
This included certain birds, macaques, meerkats, hyenas, and lemurs.
Dr. Thomas Hughes is a UK-based scientist and science communicator who makes complex topics accessible to readers. His articles explore breakthroughs in various scientific disciplines, from space exploration to cutting-edge research.
