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VIDEO: B.C. Bigg’s whales spotted in hunting frenzy in California waters

Bigg’s whales recorded and shared online by the California Killer Whale Project

Bigg’s killer whales, usually seen off British Columbia, were documented off the shores of California in an “exotic” June 5 sighting.

The mammal-eating orca were recorded in a hunting and feeding frenzy and shared online by the California Killer Whale Project. The non-profit was established in 2019 but works with a 66-year database of sighting data and a mandate to continue the long-term study of the ecology, natural history, and conservation of California’s killer whales.

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Using photos taken from multiple vessels, CKWP staff identified them as 30-year-old matriarch T065B, son T065B1, 12, four-year-old juvenile T065B2 and calf T065B3 at less than a year.

“We only rarely see killer whales from BC in Monterey Bay! They were feeding on a California sea lion when first seen, and were celebrating with some spyhops – especially the calf T065B3,” CKWP explained in a social media post.

Within a half hour the family killed and feasted on another sea lion in a prolonged attack that included high leaps. A third hunt not long after finished quickly.

“They celebrated again, with some breaches, spyhops, and tail slaps; the calf was especially active.”