See the Sea’s Apex Predator Sneak onto Land to Snatch a Sea Lion Right Off the Beach!

Key Points

• Orcas use a hunting method called intentional stranding to seize Southern sea lion pups.
• The technique appears to have been taught to the younger whales and re-enforces just how intelligent these animals are.
• Orcas can work together to hunt animals and have been seen creating waves to knock seals from floating ice.

The sea lion pups in this clip have no idea what is coming to get them! They cannot imagine that they would get attacked by a sea creature when they are safely on land. But that is exactly what happens and it demonstrates just how intelligent orcas are. Scroll down to watch the full video of the orca hunting technique that is called ‘intentional stranding’.

Orcas Can Hunt Using Intentional Stranding

We are not given the details of where this is filmed but we know that an orca population off Patagonia use this technique. A pod of around 10 orcas in this location is led by a 40-year-old matriarch. All of them use intentional stranding – they launch their bodies onto the beach to seize Southern sea lion pups. This is a risky move because the killer whales are genuinely stranded for a brief moment. As you can see in this clip, they have to wriggle their bodies around to get back into the water. The technique appears to have been taught to the younger whales and re-enforces just how intelligent these animals are.

How Do Orcas Normally Hunt Prey?

When it comes to diet, there are ecotypes of orcas. This means that the two types are distinct from each other and occupy different habitats. Northeastern Pacific orcas eat fish but the transient orcas eat mostly marine mammals such as seals. Also, those living around New Zealand eat sharks and rays. Some orcas eat dolphins (despite being members of the dolphin family themselves) and typically ram into them to stun the prey before eating them. We see the orca in this clip violently flinging the sea lion around as if it is trying to stun it too.

Orcas normally hunt in the water. They have been seen herding fish before stunning them by striking them with their tails. We also know that orcas can work together to hunt animals on the land. They have been seen creating waves to knock seals from floating ice. Impressive!

Watch the Impressive Footage Right Here: