Source: High North News, No.11, Nov. 1996, published by the High North Alliance

    Whale War

    False killer whales and bottlenose dolphins gang up against sperm whales outside the Galapagos Islands, reports BBC Wildlife Magazine, in it’s October issue. The incident, which was witnessed by a US scientist, involved 25 false killer whales joining up with 15 bottlenose dolphins in an attack on a pod of 20 female and juvenile sperm whales. The bottlenose dolphins are known to head-butt their opponents, but when the sperm whales dived to escape they left behind pieces of flesh in their wake. (Marine Mammal Science, Vol 12).

    The BBC Wildlife article suggest that an explanation for such aggression might be that the cetaceans are experiencing increased competition for habitat and food. Another suggestion is that the aggressors are harassing the whales into vomiting their stomach contents in order to feed on the resulting regurgitations. Another whale war has been taking place in the Moray Firth in Scottish waters, where bottlenose dolphins are reported as being responsible for a large number of harbour porpoise deaths.

    For further information on the Moray Firth dolphin attack on harbour porpoises, see: http://www.highnorth.no/th-do-fr.htm

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