# killer whales eating people **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 10, 1999, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killer-whales-eating-people/2975 "1999-05-10T12:24:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Stephen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/96bed5/32.png) [@Stephen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephen)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 1999, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killer-whales-eating-people/2975/21 "1999-09-01T01:13:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Has any body seen the orca vs. Great White video shot off California? Hard to tell what going on, but supposedly the orca kicked the shark’s ass. Maybe it was too big for the shark…or too smart. Unless an orca is sick, it won’t have any problem with sharks. They can (literally) swim circles around just about anything in the ocean (excepting dolphins, of course). * * * Stephen [Stephen’s Website](http://stephen.fathom.org) Satellite Hunting 1.1.0 visible satellite pass prediction shareware available for download at [Satellite Hunting](http://stephen.fathom.org/sathunt.html) ---
**Author:** ![JimFox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b9e5f3/32.png) [@JimFox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JimFox)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 1999, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killer-whales-eating-people/2975/22 "1999-09-01T04:41:00Z")
I hear a porpus (sic) can kick a Great Whites butt. ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 1999, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killer-whales-eating-people/2975/23 "1999-09-01T06:07:00Z")
Stephon-I’m not sure I understand the point of your reply. I thought it was clear that the orca had the advantage (over the gw shark) [Note: This message has been edited by Nickrz] ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 1999, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killer-whales-eating-people/2975/24 "1999-09-01T07:03:00Z")
Orca (AKA Killer Whales) are a type of dolphin. BUT remember dolphins are also a type of whale. But lately it has been discovered dollphins aren’t as peace loving as they once were thought to be. Yes Orcas most of the time don’t have trouble with Great Whites, but Orcas aren’t stupid either. They aren’t going to attack a shark when the ocean usually has a lot more prey that won’t put up as much a fight. ---
**Author:** ![Mazey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@Mazey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mazey)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 1999, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killer-whales-eating-people/2975/25 "1999-09-01T14:05:00Z")
Getting back to the original question, when visiting Alaska some years back, I heard an Indian legend that related an intelligence recognition between man and the Orca. The Orca, upon recognizing man’s intelligence, vowed never to eat man again…or something to that effect. I’d far rather think they didn’t eat man because he’s intelligent instead of being in poor taste. 🙂 * * * “There will always be somebody who’s never read a book who’ll know twice what you know.” - D.Duchovny ---
**Author:** ![Stephen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/96bed5/32.png) [@Stephen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephen)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 1999, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killer-whales-eating-people/2975/26 "1999-09-01T15:41:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Stephon-I’m not sure I understand the point of your reply. I thought it was clear that the orca had the advantage (over the gw shark). You had said that perhaps the orca was too big, or too smart. I was pointing out, that if it was tangling with the shark in the first place, it was either due to poor health, or by choice, since a few quick flicks of the fluke could put it half an ocean away. * * * Stephen [Stephen’s Website](http://stephen.fathom.org) Satellite Hunting 1.1.0 visible satellite pass prediction shareware available for download at [Satellite Hunting](http://stephen.fathom.org/sathunt.html) ---
**Author:** ![Damien](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9de053/32.png) [@Damien](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Damien)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 1999, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killer-whales-eating-people/2975/27 "1999-09-01T20:09:00Z")
I think the main reason Killer Whales aren’t commonly known to eat people is the same reason they aren’t know for eating Lambs. Lack of availability of Mint Jelly in the ocean. -Damien ---
**Author:** ![dasmoocher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dbc845/32.png) [@dasmoocher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasmoocher)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 1999, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killer-whales-eating-people/2975/28 "1999-09-02T22:30:00Z")
stephen-I see what you are saying. I was thinking more along the lines of: since the shark appeared to be a juvenile, maybe the orca was getting rid of the “competition”, so to speak, because both species feed on seals and sea lions. Getting back to the OP, there’s a case of almost the opposite behavior. One of those Discovery Channel shows on orcas had a piece about a pod of orcas that “tried to help” (for lack of a better term) a diver in distress. A husband and wife research team had been studying this pod for years in Alaska. The husband dived to observe them on a regular basis. On one dive something went wrong (maybe with his regulator) and he drowned. The wife, who remained in the boat, had no idea anything was wrong until the whales started to act agitated. The show, I think, wants to give the impression that the whales were familiar with the diver, knew something was wrong, and tried to communicate this to the dive boat. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killer-whales-eating-people/2975.md?page=1)