Orcas filmed smashing giant sunfish into thousands of pieces
Researchers say the behavior may help juveniles feed and learn hunting skills, and they documented it twice in 2024 and 2025.
- On Thursday, July 23, 2026, researchers published findings in Frontiers in Ethology documenting orcas in Mexico's Gulf of California ramming dead sunfish in a newly identified behavior termed 'ram-to-fragment.'
- Sharptail sunfish possess a dense, collagen-rich capsule difficult to tear, prompting orcas to employ a 'hold-to-ram' technique where one whale stabilizes prey while another accelerates to shatter the tough outer layer.
- Marine biologist Erick Higuera Rivas first witnessed the behavior in December 2021, with divers documenting collaborative incidents in 2024 and 2025 that turned carcasses into 'thousands of pieces' for easier ingestion.
- Younger orcas benefit from fragmentation, consuming nutrient-rich remains when they lack adult jaw leverage, while experts suggest the practice reinforces social bonds and provides subadults opportunity to practice strike precision.
- Future research aims to determine if this behavior is culturally learned or specific to this population, as Higuera notes that maintaining respectful distance is vital for safely documenting such hidden marine mysteries.
199 Articles
199 Articles
Orcas surprise science again. Researchers working in the Gulf of California captured for the first time on video a hunting and processing behavior of prey that had never been formally described in these marine predators.
‘Culturally learned tradition’: In certain parts of the world, scientists are shocked to observe that Orcas literally explode their prey
Scientists have recently documented surprising behavior where orcas ram into prey with such force that it literally explodes into thousands of pieces. According to The Washington Post and The Guardian, this phenomenon has been recently observed off the coast of Mexico in the Gulf of California. Per reports, the targets of these high-speed collisions are sharp-tail sunfish. These fish are massive, bony, and slow-moving creatures that hang out ne…
Orcas burst moonfish: In the Gulf of California, researchers have observed a rare phenomenon in Orcas.
Sword whales are notorious in Europe for their dubious – and often destructive – interest in sailing yachts. Now a video shows that they can also be quite different.
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 51% of the sources are Center
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
