Knowledge Tree
killer whale
Also known as: Orcinus orca, killer whale, killer whales
Facts (11)
Sources
A review of climate change impacts on migration patterns of marine ... frontiersin.org Oct 25, 2024 10 facts
claimMinke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata), sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus), and killer whales (Orcinus orca) arrive earlier at high latitudes and depart later in the northeast Atlantic Arctic, according to research by Storrie et al. (2018), Bengtsson et al. (2022), and Stafford et al. (2022; 2024).
referenceMatthews et al. (2020b) concluded that the presence of killer whales influences bowhead whales to select sea ice habitats as a defensive strategy in Arctic environments.
referenceLefort et al. (2020) estimated killer whale abundance and predicted their consumption of narwhals in the Canadian Arctic.
referenceMatthews et al. (2024) inferred that dietary plasticity and broad North Atlantic origins, as indicated by bulk and amino acid-specific δ15N and δ13C isotope analysis, support the expansion of killer whale ranges into Arctic waters.
claimKiller whales (Orcinus orca) have shown increasing detections in the Pacific Arctic region, as reported by K. M. Stafford in 2019.
claimKiller whales have extended their season of residence in both the Canadian High Arctic and the Pacific Arctic, indicating expanded migratory routes and timing, as documented by Higdon et al. (2014) and Stafford (2019).
claimMany migratory cetaceans, including blue, fin, humpback, minke, killer, and sperm whales, have exhibited northward shifts in their migration endpoints and seasonal distributions over recent decades.
referenceHigdon et al. (2014) conducted an Inuit knowledge survey regarding the distribution and abundance of killer whales (Orcinus orca) in Nunavut, Canada.
referenceMatthews et al. (2020a) determined that the presence of epizoic barnacles on Arctic killer whales indicates that these whales previously resided in warmer waters.
accountThe Nunavummiut, who are Inuit residents of Nunavut, have observed an increase in killer whales in Nunavut waters, which they associate with reductions in sea ice and changing movement patterns of the marine mammals that killer whales prey upon.
Why Did Sleep Evolve? | Scientific American scientificamerican.com Jan 1, 2013 1 fact
claimNewborn killer whales and dolphins, as well as their mothers, hardly sleep for weeks if the calves are born during a migration.