Scientists have documented a bizarre new behavior in killer whales that left researchers astonished: body-slamming giant prey so hard it explodes into thousands of pieces. The newly described “ram-to-fragment” behavior was captured off Mexico in 2024 and detailed in the journal Frontiers in Ethology. After a pod killed a massive sharp-tail sunfish, an adult female held the carcass in place while an adult male slammed into it at high speed,...
Scientists have documented a bizarre new behavior in killer whales that left researchers astonished: body-slamming giant prey so hard it explodes into thousands of pieces. The newly described “ram-to-fragment” behavior was captured off Mexico in 2024 and detailed in the journal Frontiers in Ethology. After a pod killed a massive sharp-tail sunfish, an adult female held the carcass in place while an adult male slammed into it at high speed, instantly shattering it. “It was like an explosion,” lead researcher Kathryn Ayres told ABC News, adding that she’d never seen such behavior from an orca before. A juvenile orca was then seen feeding on the smaller fragments, leading scientists to believe the behavior may help younger whales eat more easily. But Ayres said it could also simply be play. “Orcas are well-known for engaging in play with prey,” she told CNN, adding that the whales had already eaten the fish’s most nutritious organs, suggesting the dramatic impact “could have just been for fun.”
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