These small populations of orcas, including the Southern Residents and those around New Zealand, do not appear to interact or interbreed with other communities, are at high risk of being lost forever. Transient orcas hunt dolphins, seals, and whales. Transient orcas live in very small pods of two to seven whales, and unlike resident pods, travel and hunt an area of up to 1,500 miles and have no known travel patterns which cause them to be very hard to study. Skull Crushers, Transient Orcas (T065As) eat lots of Harbor Seals in San Juan Channel Yesterday was probably one of the hottest of the summer here in the San Juan Islands. Looking at all populations, orcas are generalist eaters, consuming fish, seals and sea lions, dolphins and porpoises, sharks and rays, large whales, cephalopods (octopods and squids), seabirds and more. Killer whales, (Orcinus orca) commonly called orcas, are found in all the world’s oceans, but the best known and most studied populations are those of the Pacific Northwest. Transient orcas, which have a broader diet, have shown similar selective behavior, in one case killing a gray whale but eating only its tongue. Orcas, it turns out, have picky palates. Transient orcas unlike residents prefer to eat marine mammals as opposed to fish. Pod od Orcas in Norway – Credit : Paul Nicklen 4 – Orcas are found in all Oceans The Bigg’s or Transient population of the Pacific Northwest has been identified as a distinct race. Transient orcas almost exclusively eat marine mammals, such as seals, sea lions, dolphins and whales, employing highly coordinated tactics to hunt their prey. Years can go by without seeing a particular orca. There appear to be both resident and transient pod populations of orcas. They also eat fish, squid, and seabirds. Transient orcas provide a good illustration of orca cultures. Additionally, Orcas move the floating ice to get the prey into the water. Mammals Seals, sea lions, porpoises, dolphins, sometimes other whales (not orcas though), sharks. Years can go by without seeing a particular orca. Instead, they travel in matrilines- … Do mother birds really abandon their chicks if a human touches them? Transient orcas live in very small pods of two to seven whales, and unlike resident pods, travel and hunt an area of up to 1,500 miles and have no known travel patterns which cause them to be very hard to study. Their range encompasses the same waters as those used by the Resident Communities of Washington State, British Columbia and Alaska. Orcas hunt in deadly pods, family groups of up to 40 individuals. What do orcas eat? Because Transients hunt mammals who have keen senses to detect their predators, they can’t travel around in huge groups because their prey would easily detect them. 2019. However, they need to break the bodies of large animals to eat them. They also eat fish, squid, and seabirds. Known as ecotypes, these distinct types of orcas differ in size, appearance, prey preferences, foraging techniques, dialects, behaviours, and social groups. The social structure of transient orcas is a bit looser than that of their fish-eating cousins. Over the last few decades, as wild orca research has expanded, researchers have described different forms or types of orcas.