A spear fisherman was frightened out of a New Zealand bay recently by orcas, or killer whales, which then turned their attention to a dog as it was swimming nearby.
The event was captured on video, and the dog (the best footage) comes into view at the 42-second mark.
This occurred in Matheson Bay, an area where orcas often hunt for rays and fishes.
Writes Candace Calloway Whiting, a marina mammal expert, in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer:
"Most likely neither the diver nor the dog were in danger from these killer whales because orcas are unknown to have ever intentionally harmed a human in the wild, nor attacked dogs either as far as I am aware – and these were most likely the fish eating type that specializes in hunting rays in the shallows around this part of New Zealand. Orcas pretty much stick to their accustomed menus, and human or dog are not on it; they just may be as curious about us as we are about them."
Still, the diver probably will remember the experience for as long as he lives. Presumably, the same goes for the dog.
--Pete Thomas
Related:
--Southern California's most popular dolphin is named Patches
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