Orcas (Orcinus orca) Use Different Strategies to Prey on Rays in the Gulf of California

Written By Karina Busto

Photo Credit: © Erick Higuera

Orcas (Orcinus orca) Use Different Strategies to Prey on Rays in the Gulf of California

Jesús Erick Higuera-Rivas | Edgar Mauricio Hoyos-Padilla | Fernando R. Elorriaga-Verplancken | Hiram Rosales-Nanduca | Rick Rosenthal | Jorge Urbán R.

Aquatic Mammals 49 (1) (2023)

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1578/AM.49.1.2023.7

Abstract

Short Note. Orcas or killer whales (Orcinus orca) are among the most cosmopolitan cetaceans on the planet (Rice, 1998). In the semi-enclosed sea of the Gulf of California in México (Figure 1a), sightings of orcas are considered relatively frequent year-round. However, little is known about their ecology and hunting behavior in this region (Guerrero-Ruiz et al., 1998, 2007; Niño-Torres et al., 2011). Worldwide, orcas feed on a wide variety of prey, including marine mammals, sea birds, sea turtles, bony and cartilaginous fish, and cephalopods (Fertl et al., 1996; Nichol & Shackleton, 1996; Dahlheim & Heyning, 1999; Ford & Ellis, 2014; Vargas-Bravo et al., 2020).

Keywords: Orca, ray, prey, Gulf of California

Karina Busto
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