The Orca hunts in packs. It eats warm and cold blooded animals. The Orca
has a very interesting way of finding food. They use "echo-location," which
is kind of like sonar. Some divers say that if you're in ones path, you can
feel the sound waves bounce off you!The Orca grabs it's prey with it's teeth. It then kills it by biting it or swallowing it whole. After grabbing a seal or sea lion, an Orca will play with it like a cat with a mouse. Orcas have been known to slide up on shore and grab a seal or sea lion. They've also been known to ram ice floes to dump penguins in the water. These are some of the ways they catch the food they eat. Some other foods the Orcas eat are: Sea Lion, Squid, Penguins, Dolphins, Atlantic Mackerel, and Sprats.
Appearance
The Orca is a toothed whale, and has 48 teeth. Orcas are large animals.
They may grow up to 30 feet and weigh 11 tons. A whale's tail goes
horizontally, unlike tails on a fish. An Orca has a large back fin. A male's
fin is larger than a female's. An Orca is black and white. Color pattern
varies among the Orcas.
Environment
Orcas live in oceans around the world, but mostly in the subarctic and
subantarctic seas. These seas are pretty cold. In these seas the Orca
whale pods hunt the Sea Lions, Squid, Seals, Penguins, Dolphins, Atlantic
Mackerel, and the Sprats they eat.
Adaptation
Orcas live in frigid seas, so they would have to have adapted to their
environment. One way is their black and white colors. These colors help
camouflage them. Also a way of adapting that is true of all whales is that
their blowhole is at the top of their head. This enables them to come up
and breathe more easily. Another is probably their blubber. It might help
keep them warm in the frigid seas they live in. Orcas are the fastest mammals in the sea. They can go up to 34 mph. Their speed helps them catch their prey.
Behavior/Lifestyle
Orcas live in groups of several hundred called pods. They stay in these
groups for life. In the pods, the Orcas swim and hunt. Orcas are gentle and
tame and survive well in captivity. They rarely attack people. In fact,
there is no record of a human death caused by Orcas.
Mating and Reproduction
With Orcas, mating and reproduction is basically the same as with other
marine mammals. The Orcas come together and mate belly to belly. A
female carries her calf for 9 to 12 months. A calf is born in the water. It
can swim from the moment it is born. It will rise unaided to the surface
for its first breath of air. The calf will remain in the pod for life.
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The Wild Ones
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