Seal escapes orca hunt by jumping onto photographer's boat

A wildlife lensman captured a melodramatic brushwood connected video betwixt a harbor seal and a pod of slayer whales

SEATTLE -- A wildlife lensman retired connected a whale watching travel successful waters disconnected Seattle captured melodramatic video and photos of a pod of slayer whales hunting a seal that survived lone by clambering onto the stern of her boat.

Charvet Drucker was connected a rented 20-foot (6-meter) vessel adjacent her location connected an land successful the Salish Sea astir 40 miles northwest of Seattle erstwhile she spotted a pod of astatine slightest 8 slayer whales, besides known arsenic orcas.

The orcas' coordinated movements and process slaps suggested they were hunting. Drucker utilized the zoom lens connected her camera to spot a harbor seal that was trying to fly from the pod. One of her shots showed the seal flying done the aerial supra the scrum of orcas frothing the water, and she assumed she was witnessing the seal's past moments alive.

But arsenic the orcas got person to the boat, Drucker and her radical realized the pod was inactive chasing the seal. In enactment with wildlife boating regulations, they had chopped the motor to forestall immoderate wounded to the whales. The seal clambered retired of the h2o and onto a swimming level astatine the stern of the vessel adjacent the centrifugal — claiming it arsenic a beingness raft of sorts.

Wildlife regulations besides prohibit touching oregon interfering with the seal, but Drucker began filming video.

“You mediocre thing,” Drucker tin beryllium heard saying, arsenic the seal looks up astatine her. "You’re good, conscionable stay, buddy.”

The orcas did not springiness up immediately, but alternatively appeared to squad up to stone the vessel and marque the seal autumn off. Drucker's cellphone video shows the orcas lining up and moving successful connected the vessel with staggered dives to make waves. The “wave-washing” method has been documented since by scientists since astatine slightest the 1980s, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The seal connected Drucker's vessel slid disconnected astatine slightest once, but managed to ascent backmost on, and the orcas swam distant aft astir 15 minutes.

Drucker has photographed dormant seals successful the mouths of orcas before, and she says she’s mostly blessed erstwhile the whales get to eat.

“I’m decidedly Team Orca, each day, each day. But erstwhile that seal was connected the boat, I benignant of turned (into) Team Seal,” she said successful an interrogation with The Associated Press connected Thursday.

The slayer whales that hunt seals and a divers acceptable of marine animals successful the country are known arsenic Bigg’s oregon “transient” orcas. They are amended fed past different much specialized taxon similar the salmon-focused “resident” orcas who are connected the endangered taxon list, according to NOAA.

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