The gripping scene of three killer whales hunting a great white shark in South Africa's Mossel Bay is gaining an audience on social media with over 17,000 views as of writing. The wildlife was caught by a drone camera soaring above the four marine animals, which gives new insights into why these apex predators were leaving the area.
Killer whales or also known as orcas, are known to target the livers of great white sharks because it is rich in fat, which is the favorite diet of whales. Since 2017, about seven shark carcasses have been washed ashore in the Western Cape, all with missing liver, which led experts to theorize orcas must be eating them and the recent footage is proof of this claim.
Killer Whales Target Great White Sharks in South Afric
Great white sharks used to be abundant in the waters around South Africa due to the large population of their main source of food, the Cape fur seals, according to MailOnline. But what used to be 900 of them is now only 522 because they have become prey to a larger sea animal.
Great white sharks are no match for the larger, braver, and more strategic orcas. Hence they are called killer whales. Shark spotters recorded an average of 205 great white sightings within the 600 square mile section of the Atlantic Ocean between 2010 and 2016. But by 2018, there were only 50 and this year, not even a single one of great white shark has been spotted.
Experts think that pollution, climate change, and over-fishing of their natural prey have something to do with the unexpected vanishing of the great white sharks.
Science Times previously reported a study that points out that killer whales are the reason for the 2017 great white carcasses of Gansbaai. Researchers said that determining how this happens will help them understand the dynamics of coexistence with other predator communities.
The presence of orcas in areas rich in great white sharks might suggest a decline in the population of their prey, which causes changes in their distribution pattern. It is notable also that killer whales mainly target subadult great white sharks, which makes the shark population vulnerable and could have a long-term ecological impact on balance in marine ecosystems.
[WATCH] Aerial Footage of Three Killer Whales Hunting A 9-Foot Great White Shark in South Africa
ALSO READ: Who's Responsible for the Disappearance of the Great White Sharks in Cape Town?
3 Orcas Attack, Kill and Eat the Liver of A Great White Shark
The footage is part of the long-term work of biologist Alison Towner with great white sharks. It was captured for the Shark Week of Discovery Channel that aired on Thursday and was published on The Daily Beast on Wednesday, July 27. Shark Week is the annual week-long program on television that features shark-based content.
Towner shared the footage on her Instagram page, describing it as one of the most incredible pieces of natural history that have ever been recorded on video. The footage is the first ever to show orcas hunting a great white shark off the coast of South Africa.
The video begins by showing two orcas swimming near the surface of the teal water of Mossel Bay, which is known to be abundant with sharks, as one great white shark tries to escape. But suddenly, a third orca rose from the depths and attacked the 9-foot shark with its mouth.
The shark stopped moving and a pool of blood surrounded them. The orca carried the shark and dived back below the surface. Towner told The Daily Beast that it was the first drone footage of orcas predating a white shark, and the first direct evidence of the phenomenon documented in the country.
RELATED ARTICLE: Orca vs. Great White Shark in Cape Town, South Africa; Killer Whales Feast on Sharks' Livers Driving Them Away From the Hotspot
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