oupacademic:Orcas are arguably the most recognized aquaticanimal today. The toothed cetacean has exi
oupacademic:Orcas are arguably the most recognized aquaticanimal today. The toothed cetacean has existed as one of the ocean’s largestpredators for centuries, datingback as early as the Pleistocene. Similar to dolphinsand whales, orcas are aquatic mammals, and thereby must resurface to breathe.At their largest, male orcas can grow to reach nearly thirty feet in length andalmost twenty thousand pounds. Yet despite their mammoth size, orcas areincredibly facile and nimble animals. Orcas are additionally very social and intelligentcreatures. Travellingin familial pods, orcas are able to develop an acousticlanguage within their given pod, comprised of various whistles and pulsedcalls. Their utilization of biosonar enables complex methods of communicationbetween pods that vary based on the region of the pod. Orcas in the wild have a maximum life expectancy of 60to 70 for males and 80 to 100 for females, which influences the establishmentof matrilines within pods. The life longevity of orcas is typically between 30and 50, but orcasin captivity have an average life expectancy of 14 years.In relatively recent history, the fad of orcacaptivity for commercial entertainment has become popularized, manifestingitself into the growing demand for the capture of orcas. The 2013 documentary Blackfishunveils the inhumanity of orca captivity, whosehistory spans for almost half a century before the release of the documentary.GIF by Julia Baker and Nicole Piendel for Oxford University Press -- source link