Talk:Orca/Archive 3

Three Distinct Populations
Shouldn't this section be a subsection of Taxonomy and evolution? Or at least be located further down in the article? → ΣcoPhreek Δ 18:03, 20 April 2006 (UTC)


 * It should. It was written after the bulk of the article and hasn't got integrated that well yet. Any volunteers? Pcb21 Pete 21:15, 20 April 2006 (UTC)


 * How's that? Added links to source information reguarding the three races.Let me know if I did it wrong. &rarr; ΣcoPhreek Δ 22:40, 20 April 2006 (UTC)


 * Modified it to North America - it´s not known if the residents/transients/offshores designation occurs worldwide.SammytheSeal 07:21, 21 April 2006 (UTC)


 * And I made a few trivial edits on top of that. It's certainly better than it was, thank you. I wonder if we can still do more as there is overlap with the range and physical characteristics sections too. Pcb21 Pete 07:38, 21 April 2006 (UTC)


 * I´ve been working on extending details of norwegian orcas and filling the carousel feeding stub - a while from being ready to add tho... one of these days ;)SammytheSeal 07:45, 21 April 2006 (UTC)

Taxonomy
The orca evolved to its present form more or less at the same time as Megalodon was fading into extinction..., is this sentence the correct way to word this? It sounds speculative. I wouldn't know how to rewrite it as I'm not sure what part sounds clumsy. →ΣcoPhreek Δ 14:04, 26 April 2006 (UTC)


 * I've commented it out, as I agree it sounds very dodgy. Perhaps someone could comment further here if they have a source. Pcb21 Pete 14:20, 26 April 2006 (UTC)


 * It is a certainty though that Killer Whales replaced Megalodon in its ecological role as large marine mammals' hunter. --Draco ignoramus sophomoricus (talk) 19:01, 27 May 2008 (UTC)

Could be due to their "convergent" evolution as large whale hunting counterparts of their closest relatives (Delphinidae and Lamnidae)... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 92.118.191.48 (talk) 02:07, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

Does Man Predate Orcas?
From the penultimate paragraph: With this huge variety of prey, and no predators other than man, the orca is very much at the top of the food chain. I don't believe humans eat Orcas (perhaps we do - anyone out there know?). In which case I suggest that and no other predators than man be removed or changed. --Dumbo1 20:05, 24 May 2006 (UTC)
 * Man does hunt Orca therefor man is a predator of Orca as it states under the hunting subsection. therefor "and no predators other than man" is valid. &rarr; ΣcoPhreek Δ 20:25, 24 May 2006 (UTC)
 * OK. The reason I ask is because the sentence is about food, prey, predation and predators, yet includes the information that humans are super-predators, as a side-point. I believe these are two points, and could be easily split out to make the two points, better. --Dumbo1 23:07, 25 May 2006 (UTC)
 * I guess I am missing your point here. Man is a predator of Orcas (in the food sense), humans do hunt Orcas for food purposes. Granted the two sentences in the closing blurb probably do not belong (there at the end and together) and should be worked further up into the article. I have no problem with that as long as reference is kept to man being a predator of the species (even if it is a given that man is a predator to most species). &rarr; ΣcoPhreek Δ 00:07, 26 May 2006 (UTC)
 * In the interest of gender neutrality, oughtn't we say no predators other than humans?--76.22.88.212 (talk) 21:36, 18 May 2008 (UTC)

Transient pod #'s
Here are my sources: Center for Whale Research, The National Ocean Sciences Bowl, Whales BC, and The Canadian Encyclopedia. The last one does state that they can number up to 22 individuals but that up to 7 are the norm ← Σc o  Phreek → 23:58, 2 August 2006 (UTC)

Parks that Formerly Held Orcas
Is this subsection needed? I can see listing the ones still in captivity, but does the listing of those that died in captivity add anything to the article? ← Σc o  Phreek → 23:58, 2 August 2006 (UTC)


 * No --Yath 00:49, 3 August 2006 (UTC)

Orca picture
I noticed the picture at the beginning of the article is used later as well. Should one of them be replaced, taken out or left alone? Justinmeister 16:18, 7 November 2006 (UTC)
 * I've replaced the later one and moved its caption to the beginning. Kla'quot 04:37, 8 November 2006 (UTC)

Ages of orcas
I deleted this: ''It should be noted that the technology to track orcas in the wild has only recently been developed. In the past, scientists have used visual identification of the whales and estimated their ages. While this does provide ideas of ages, it is not 100% accurate, which means the ages of most whales are merely estimated. The only whales whose ages are known for certain are those whose births have been recorded and those born in captivity.''. This seems to me either very misleading or entirely incorrect. The technology used to track orcas in the wild, photo-identification, has existed for decades and has enabled individual orcas to be tracked from birth. What this means is that each individual member of the Northern and Southern Resident communities off British Columbia is named at birth and that we know exactly what year they were born in. Kla'quot 08:55, 11 November 2006 (UTC)

Famous Orcas section
I have some concerns about this section. I think it might be best to delete it, and add a See Also link to Category:Famous orcas. My concerns are:
 * Do we have criteria for which animals to include on this list? There are currently 19 individuals in Category:Famous orcas.
 * I think the article would read more smoothly if anecdotes about individual orcas were woven throughout the text. Kla'quot 09:15, 12 November 2006 (UTC)


 * I've gone ahead and done this. Kla'quot 07:27, 16 November 2006 (UTC)

Pliny the Elder
Does someone have a source verifying that such a description (second paragraph) occured? Otherwise it should be deleted. Justinmeister 22:50, 22 November 2006 (UTC)
 * Yes. Orca. --Iustinus 06:23, 23 November 2006 (UTC)


 * Whoops, sorry I must have missed that. Justinmeister 07:03, 23 November 2006 (UTC)


 * Yes. While that was silly of you, you have brought up a valid point: the full mention of Pliny has become much less prominant as this article has expanded, and now it's easy to miss. Perhaps a "see below" or something might be justified to prevent others from making the same mistake. --Iustinus 07:26, 23 November 2006 (UTC)


 * Is it really neccesary to mention Pliny in the lead section? Would the lead section's value be diminished with its ommision and only mention it at the later point in the article? Justinmeister 16:20, 28 November 2006 (UTC)
 * I've nuked it from the lead. It's not only unnecessary but also Eurocentric and probably inaccurate (nobody feared orcas before the year 23?) Thanks for pointing this out. Kla'quot 04:22, 29 November 2006 (UTC)
 * My pleasure. Justinmeister 05:42, 29 November 2006 (UTC)

moving nomenclature
I'd like to move nomenclature to the bottom to reflect its importance. Any objections? --Grahamtalk/mail/ e 00:09, 27 November 2006 (UTC)
 * Sounds good. And/or it would be good to edit it liberally, as there's a lot of trivia in the section. It could also be spun out into a separate article on, for example, Attitudes towards cetaceans. Kla'quot

Famous Orcas
I'm quite sure Shamu DID NOT appear in Free Willy; the appearance was made by Keiko who died in 2003 from pneumonia. Shamu is a famous orca at sea world. People, let's please try harder to keep these articles accurate. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.158.41.214 (talk • contribs)


 * I don't think the article says that. If it does, please be bold and correct errors. BTW Shamu is a role played by several orcas. Kla'quot 04:33, 4 December 2006 (UTC)

Quick question on images
With so many pictures available of real Orcas why is this picture in the article? It does not lend to the article & IMHO is not a realistic representation of an Orca leaping from the water. Just wondering. Nashville Monkey 04:15, 4 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Good points. I put in that picture to illustrate "Diet" because orcas do often leap when hunting. If you can replace it with a better picture for that section, by all means please do. Kla'quot 04:31, 4 December 2006 (UTC)
 * hrm... bit off that one didn"t I... Nashville Monkey 04:37, 4 December 2006 (UTC)
 * OK, I found a photo and put it in. The photo is of fish-eating orcas, but they look like they're about to gang up on a whale... Kla'quot 10:02, 5 December 2006 (UTC)

Spin out the Captivity section?
The Captivity section is really long, and is missing any description of the pro-captivity point of view. I think it would be good to spin it out into its own article with a summary and link in this article. We could have the article also cover other cetaceans in captivity, e.g. with the title Cetaceans in captivity. What do you think? Kla'quot 06:16, 5 December 2006 (UTC)

Land attacks
There doesn't seem to be any mention of land attacks -- possibly a learned behavior that orcas have recently developed (that is, literally coming out of the water onto land or ice floes to attack prey). No one had ever seen orcas do this til the last 2 decades or so. JAF1970 21:34, 14 December 2006 (UTC)
 * As seen here The Blue Planet JAF1970 15:23, 18 December 2006 (UTC)


 * Please do not add links to violations of copyrighted materialSammytheSeal 11:24, 19 December 2006 (UTC)

more colors
'''okay i didn't add any info but i made the info box blue instead of pink because the pink on every single plant and animal info box is so boring. okay you need to make it diffrent colors or evey one is bored!!!!!''' —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 74.241.121.216 (talk) 13:23, 22 December 2006 (UTC).
 * Please don't do this. Pink is for animals, green is for plants. This is the standard from WP:TOL. - UtherSRG (talk) 14:31, 22 December 2006 (UTC)

Girl attacked and the poor whale killed
Killer whale bites girl —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Halaqah (talk • contribs) 12:07, 6 January 2007 (UTC).
 * This is the Apr. 20, 1971 Annette Eckis/Shamu incident. This was the first Shamu and she died on Augest 23, 1971. According to "Orcas Deceased in Captivity", Shamu died from pyometra and septicemia.  Shamu was not killed because of this incident.   204.80.61.10 15:33, 12 January 2007 (UTC)Bennett Turk

Link suggestion
The following link was added by an IP user and then removed by me as irrelevant to family (biology):


 * Site sur les differents orques et leur mode de reproduction évitant la consanguinité.

I leave it to the authors of the Orca page to decide whether it is worth mention or not. Alexei Kouprianov 11:15, 11 January 2007 (UTC)

Japan orca hunt
I removed this Comment " Japan usually takes a few individuals each year as part of its controversial program of scientific research as specified in IWC constitution"

A quick look through Japanese whaling Statistics here shows no orca hunt SammytheSeal 20:41, 16 January 2007 (UTC)

Distribution
I removed this: "[The orca is] the second-most widely distributed mammal on Earth (after humans excluding: rats, dogs, cats, pigs)". The "excluding" part is a recent addition and an excellent point. Kla'quot 14:04, 18 January 2007 (UTC)

Killer Whales attacking people
Apsley Cherry in "The Worst Journey in the World" recounts in the first person killer whales attacking people walking on Antarctic sea ice. Doesn't this count as a confirmed attack on people by wild killer whales? January 8, 1911 he documents it, and it occurs multiple times throughout the book.

Cherry's book is a well respected autobiographical text of an event which many other men witnessed. I am aware of no accounts that contradict his, at least not in the matter of the killer whales attacking humans working on the ice floes. Shall we add a discusion of this? 63.107.91.99 19:24, 24 January 2007 (UTC)

There have been several reported cases of orcas trying to tip over sheets of ice, on which people were standing. Among the individuals who saw them was Sir Robert Falcon Scott, whose 1912 expedition was the subject of the book "The Worst Journey in the World". I doubt if all of these reports can be dismissed as just tall tales. 204.80.61.10 19:10, 31 January 2007 (UTC)Bennett Turk

Well, this happily seems uncontroversial. I'm going to go edit the text of the article to discuss attacks by wild killer whales on people. - 63.107.91.99 16:36, 12 February 2007 (UTC)

Proposal to merge articles on cetaceans in captivity
Hello, I've created a proposal to merge several articles and spin out some details frm this article. The proposal is at Wikipedia_talk:WikiProject_Cetaceans. Please add your thoughts there. Kla'quot 11:06, 29 January 2007 (UTC)

Spelling style
There is an inconsistency between American and British English. "Colour" and "behaviour" are used, but "behavior" is also used as the spelling several times. -- Gray  Porpoise Your wish is my command! 02:37, 31 January 2007 (UTC)

Conservation section - suggested citations
There is a note that citations are needed for the statement that whale watching can stress and change orca behaviour. There are a few scientific research papers, but many are PDF. A few possibilities are:
 * Behavioural responses of male killer whales to a ‘leapfrogging’ vessel
 * Underwater noise of whale-watching boats and potential effects on killer whales (Orcinus orca), based on an acoustic impact model
 * Short- and Long-term Effects of Whale Watching on Killer Whales (Orcinus orca) in British Columbia
 * A Model Linking Energetic Effects of Whale Watching to Killer Whale (Orcinus Orca) Population Dynamics

Eileen 15:02, 4 February 2007 (UTC)


 * Thanks for digging up these great references. I've added the first one as a citation. Kla'quot 07:30, 18 February 2007 (UTC)

Orca Species
in this section the various types of orca are explained but it appears someone has had some fun with it and added to the info, for instance some race/specie likes to eat shrimp, shrimp, and shrimps, and an other likes seaweed, but in the next line it doesnt, while latter on one of the species is described as gryyyyyyyyyyyish (what the hell color is that?) i dont know anything about orcas so i thought i would let someone know.128.173.144.136 13:39, 16 February 2007 (UTC)


 * It was probably vandalism that has since been reverted. Kla'quot 17:27, 16 February 2007 (UTC)

Orcas in channel islands
I heard that a small pod of orcas has moved south into the Channel Islands of California, I'm not 100% sure but I think this needs to be included in the range of Orcas. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 66.27.156.187 (talk) 05:11, 18 February 2007 (UTC).

Capitalize resident/transient?
Would anyone object to us capitalizing the words "resident" and "transient", e.g. "Resident Orca"? It would help signal to the reader that these names are not descriptive. The terms are not usually capitalized, but neither is "Orca". Kla'quot 07:17, 13 March 2007 (UTC)


 * -Perhaps the best way to emphasize those two terms would be to either italicize or embolden them on their first occurrence. I'm a real stickler for proper capitalization. -- HawkeAnyone 13:28, 13 March 2007 (UTC)


 * We do bold them on first occurence, but we still have sentences such as, "Stocks of most species of salmon, a main food source for resident Orcas in the northeast Pacific, have declined dramatically in recent years." If you're only skimming the articleinstead of reading it carefully, you could easily take it to mean, "Orcas which reside in the northeast Pacific" instead of "Orcas of the resident type which happen to live in the northeast Pacific." Resident and transient are like breeds or subspecies, which I think we generally capitalize (for reasons I've forgotten). Kla'quot 05:56, 14 March 2007 (UTC)

PCBs and sickness
I've removed this: "However, no direct evidence of sickness in Orcas has been found. The most likely effect, if any, would be a reduced rate of reproduction or decreased ability to fight off disease (immunodepression)." According to the scientific sources I can find, there are strong reasons to believe that the effects of the toxins are a serious threat to the viability of some Orca stocks, the Southern Residents in particular. I'm going to try to get more details and rewrite this part in a more balanced way. Kla'quot 08:34, 15 March 2007 (UTC)

Mercy on marine mammals?
"Some Orcas have been known to direct their prey back to land either because they had eaten enough or because they felt mercy." This isn't cited and seems to be a little ridiculous. Thoughts?Neatski 00:26, 2 May 2007 (UTC)neatski


 * I see it's been removed, which seems like a good decision to me. Funny how this is another way of saying, "Some Orcas have been observed to harass other animals without eating them, for no apparent reason." Kla'quot 09:38, 26 May 2007 (UTC)

Cleaning up uncited content
I've done some spring cleanng of content that has had a Fact tag for some time:


 * 1) "They may do this to prevent them from competing for scarce resources, and not necessarily to eat them."
 * 2) "There has also been one recorded case of probable Orca cannibalism. A study in the South Pacific in 1975 recorded two male Orcas whose stomachs contained the remains of other Orcas. Of the 30 Orcas captured and examined in this survey, 11 had empty stomachs — an unusually high percentage which indicates the Orcas were forced to cannibalism through a lack of food."
 * 3) "The Orca is the only cetacean species to regularly prey on other cetaceans."
 * 4) "In tests conducted with Orcas in captivity, they recalled testing patterns up to 25 years after they were initially conducted."
 * 5) "Orcas may be the smartest species of dolphin or whale in the world.""

Some of this is intriguing and it would be nice to find refs. 09:34, 26 May 2007 (UTC)

Nomenclature Section
This whole paragraph bothers me, mostly the beginning "It is commonly thought":

"It is commonly thought that 18th-century Spanish sailors dubbed these creatures asesina-ballenas, or "whale killer" as Orcas do attack large whales. However, this title was improperly translated into English as "killer whale". The term became so prevalent that Spanish speakers commonly used its retranslation of ballena asesina."

-Misha

216.254.12.114 03:21, 27 May 2007 (UTC)

23% rate of dorsal fin collapse
Can anyone point to the original scientific study which SeaWorld is referring to for its report of a 23% rate of dorsal fin collapse in male Orcas off New Zealand? This is a high number, and extraordinary claims require very solid references. Given the SeaWorld source's incorrect statements about Orca longevity, I doubt it's a suitable source of facts for Wikipedia. Kla'quot (talk | contribs) 05:12, 26 June 2007 (UTC)
 * I have found the actual reference SeaWorld used for their article. This study was conducted by Dr. Ingrid N. Visser and here is the article's information: Visser, Ingrid N.  "Prolific body scars and collapsing dorsal fins on killer whales (Orcinus orca) in New Zealand waters."  Aquatic Mammals.   24.2, 71-81, 1998. SWF Trainer 13:30, 26 June 2007 (UTC)
 * Thank you. I found Visser's PhD thesis which says the same thing, and also proposes some additional causes of dorsal fin collapse in the wild which could be added to the section. We should both attribute the fact to a more scholarly source and describe the additional proposed causes (i.e. pollution, poor nutrition, and inbreeding). I'll try to get around to doing this if nobody beats me to it. Cheers, Kla'quot (talk | contribs) 16:12, 26 June 2007 (UTC)
 * Your welcome! However, I think the cited information should have been re-inserted in a different manner.  For instance, the reference should could from Dr. Ingrid Visser (http://www.orcaresearch.org/pdf/bodyscars.pdf) and not SeaWorld.  This maybe why you are bias with Dr. Visser's paper, in which you should not be.  Dr. Visser is internationally renowned for her research, which is supported by the The Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society.  The article in question was not funded nor supported by Anheuser-Busch or its subsidiaries.  Therefore, a bias view and a reference to SeaWorld should not be included, especially since SeaWorld only used the article on their website to support their views on dorsal fin collapse.SWF Trainer 12:48, 2 July 2007 (UTC)

Missing Link for Kandu V
I don't remember the exact time, but less than half a year ago there was a link with a picture of Kandu V bleeding after hitting Corky II. Does anyone know what happened to this picture and why it was removed from the references section? Was it a fake? (Zapocram 23:31, 26 June 2007 (UTC))
 * I removed it along with other links as part of a pruning of the External Links section. The picture is here: http://www.thememoryhole.org/whale-death.htm . My reason for removing it was that the picture itself does not have much educational value; I think it is the kind of image which disturbs but does little to inform. It might be appropriate as a link in the Kandu V article. A bigger problem, though, which just occurred to me, is that the site probably does not have the photographer's permission to use the photo. If it is displayed without permission then it is a copyright violation and not allowed on Wikipedia.
 * There are many excellent web pages on the issue of captive Orcas that we could link to. Perhaps it would be good to have a balanced set of links which cover the issue more holistically instead of focusing on a single animal. Suggestions? Kla'quot (talk | contribs) 05:15, 27 June 2007 (UTC)

Cite for Carousel feeding
I´ve provided a cite / Ref for carousel feeding as requested but don´t know how to link it to the references - if someone could move it there it would be helpful ..ta SammytheSeal 15:37, 7 August 2007 (UTC)
 * I've formatted it using Template:Cite journal. Thanks for finding it. Cheers, Kla’quot (talk | contribs) 16:06, 7 August 2007 (UTC)

Some edits
I would like to make some edits to this page. I want to change the size range and add Robin Baird's book Killer whales of the world to the General References section. User:Joeboy99 (talk | contribs) 6:10 12 August 2007 (UTC)

A couple of things
First off, this article might be useful to you guys at some point: Killing killer whales with toxics... but it's just something I stumbled across.

Secondly, if this article was put up for FAR, it might find itself delisted, just due to the external links being a mess. I know it wouldn't take a lot of doing, so it might be a worthwhile task for one of you. Seegoon 09:05, 5 September 2007 (UTC)

Antactic seal diet
Does anyone have a source for the statement that Type B orcas feed mostly on Weddell seals? Why would they not prey on other seal species in the Antarctic? Kla’quot (talk | contribs) 06:27, 18 September 2007 (UTC)

Beach feeding photo not fair use
The fair use rationale for Image:OrcaSeal.jpg is very weak. It should probably be removed. &mdash;Ryan 07:26, 22 September 2007 (UTC)
 * I agree, and have nominated the image for deletion. Cheers, Kla’quot (talk | contribs) 18:01, 22 September 2007 (UTC)

AFD debate for List of marine parks with Orcas
Alerting...there is a [[Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/List of marine parks with Orcas
 * debate at AFD here]] on whether to delete List of marine parks with Orcas, if anyone has a strong opinion either way. cheers, Casliber (talk · contribs) 02:39, 1 November 2007 (UTC)

Please watchlist Springer (orca)
Springer (orca) is in the DYK queue, and my wiki street-sense tells me it will be a vandalism target. Please add this article to your watchlists if you can. Cheers, Kla’quot (talk | contribs) 05:41, 7 November 2007 (UTC)

Plain English
Why not use plain English? This impressive animal has always been known in English as the killer whale. Should I now say that I need to take my canis for a walk and it's time to feed the mustela puturius furo, or is it still okay to call them a dog and a ferret? If my grandfather doesn't understand it, but has another perfectly natural word or words for it, then it's not really English, is it, but rather some politically quirky Newspeak. Just a thought. Patrick. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 88.13.171.70 (talk) 10:19, 10 November 2007 (UTC)
 * Both terms are used widely by both scientists and non-scientists. I get the impression that "orca" is more common in written communication because it is shorter, whereas "killer whale" is used more in speech. Some time ago there was a big debate about which term to use. I don't think it's a big deal either way. Kla’quot (talk | contribs) 07:16, 7 December 2007 (UTC)

Orca beaching pic
Can we please get that pic back? Bobisbob (talk) 23:42, 16 December 2007 (UTC)

Taxonomy and subspecies
Regarding the recent back-and-forth over whether the transients, residents, etc. are different subspecies: I can see why it is tempting to say that subspecies exist and we are waiting for firmer proof. However, killer whale taxonomy is a complex issue, as described in this 2007 article in Nature, and it is probably not the case that the way we have divided killer whale types so far correlates neatly to subspecies. Kla’quot (talk | contribs) 18:06, 5 January 2008 (UTC)

Uncited content moved from article
We have some statements and passages that have been in the article for quite some time - weeks if not months - which need citations and/or copyediting. I'm going to remove them and copy them here; this is necessary so that the article can keep its Featured status. Some of this also is too much detail for a main article and I think it should be spun out into specific articles on local orca populations. I will try to find time in the next few months to source and clean up everything; please beat me to it if you can help. Kla’quot (talk | contribs) 07:19, 15 January 2008 (UTC)


 * Offshores also seem smaller than the two other types. Offshores live only in open seas, hence the name, which makes them difficult to study. Offshores have been discovered in only 40 encounters and a lot of the information on them is speculation.


 * Transients travel on extremely unpredictable routes; they may be seen once in an area and never be seen after, or return 10 years later. This makes transients very hard to study. Transients were discovered in the 1970s when three Orcas from British Columbia were captured but refused to eat any fish for 72 days. Eventually, one of the Orcas died of starvation while the others accepted fish. It was then that local researchers began thinking of the existence of another type of Orca. Since then, transients have been successfully studied around the world, especially Argentina, the Crozet Islands and New Zealand.


 * [This causes the seal to be thrown into the water where another Orca waits to kill it.] This behaviour has only been recorded a few times and it is not known how often it occurs.


 * Orcas are well known for their mental capabilities. Studies have indicated that an Orca has an outstanding memory.

The following passage is, I think, too much detail for the main article but would be good in a region-specific article:

Researchers in British Columbia and Washington State have elaborated a complex naming system to identify the whales seen. Residents and transients each have a naming system adapted to their social structure but they are identified with the same criteria which is the dorsal fin and saddle patch. The naming system has been very successful and is used in several other places around the world, such as New Zealand, the Crozet Islands or the beaches of Punta Norte in Argentina
 * Residents: each resident pod has a letter and the number of the most distinctively marked individual; then,each other member has a number. Because most pods are made of several subpods, these have the name of the matriarch of the subpod.
 * Transients: early in the 1970s, researchers used the same naming system as for residents, but as said before, the social structure of transients is so fluid the naming system proved inefficient and confusing. They then renamed each individual with the letter "T" (transient) and a number. The pods simply became groups with the name of one of the members, most of the time the matriarch. Because of the fact that,unlike residents, offspring often leave their mother, they gave for each known offspring a letter following the name of the mother. For example, the offspring of the mother T7 will be named T7A, her second oneT7B, etc. If the offspring herself gives birth, the calf will have a number following the name,like T7A who would have a calf named T7A1.

Pat.Orca_pic
If we can't include that picture than we need another one like it to replace it. This article needs a photo of an orca hunting a seal/sea lion of some sort. Bobisbob (talk) 21:01, 18 February 2008 (UTC)

Given the recent reverts, I think there is confusion over two images. A picture that used to be in the article, which was called something like "Orcafeadseal.jpg" has been deleted as a probable copyright violation. A picture that has more recently been added, "Pat Orca.jpg" has not been deleted, however it has been nominated for deletion because it appears on a copyrighted site and we have not seen hard proof that the copyright owner agreed to an appropriate release. (For example, copyright holders often think that they are releasing a picture for use on Wikipedia only, whereas we require the picture to be free for use anywhere). Folks, please stop reverting each other and discuss your concerns instead on this Talk page. Thanks, Kla’quot (talk | contribs) 05:27, 19 February 2008 (UTC)


 * It´s the same image, It´s from the same Copyrighted BBC series, It´s uploaded by the same person. What else is there to discuss? Be my guest, I´ll quit reverting copyrighted material in future ;) SammytheSeal (talk) 06:34, 19 February 2008 (UTC)


 * The "Orcafeedseal" picture looked like this. They're not the same. Have you seen the "Pat.Orca" picture on the BBC, or elsewhere? Kla’quot (talk | contribs) 06:47, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

I´m a photographer in real life and make a middle 4 figure sum each year though web copyright violations alone. If i saw one of mine on Wikpedia, it´d be 5 figures that year. If there is any doubt whatsover about the provenance of an image, my advice is to delete it speedily. The fact that the user uploading the image has a history of uploading copyrighted material just compounds it. I would´nt even bother my IP attorney with this one - I´d just send the bill for unauthorised use;) SammytheSeal (talk) 06:56, 19 February 2008 (UTC)
 * Both are from the same program, so yes. Kla’quot.

Bobisbob (talk) 13:31, 19 February 2008 (UTC)
 * Don't accuse me of copyright infringement. I ask the holders of the photo for permission and they send a message to permissions-commons@wikimedia.org. I even forward the conversation I had with them to permissions-commons@wikimedia.org. Maybe that is not how wikipedia likes it done and I'll probably only upload only government photos in the future given the hassle. But if the photo is from a film can't it be marked with fair use?

But I will admit I made a mistake with with the "Orcafeedseal" it was used everywhere and I was told it was in the PD. Sorry about that. Bobisbob (talk) 13:36, 19 February 2008 (UTC)


 * Bobisbob. You´ve been uploading copyrighted material by your own admission ( "I made a mistake with with the "Orcafeedseal" ), I don´t need to accuse you of anything. The holders of the photos (and by this i mean the websites where you got them ) may not neccessarily be the Copyright holders of the image(s). Unless there is a clear permission via CC given by the copyright holder. Don´t upload an image.
 * But if the photo is from a film can't it be marked with fair use? In short, no. Try using a still from a Disney film and watch how fast the attorneys come down - it´s amazing. You really need to read and understand this here [] and or be 100% sure that the copyright holder has released the image under CC. Basically though, unless you are 100% sure that an image is in the public domain and can prove it (ie. from a federal website in the US or via a clear CC license) it´s better not to upload an imagein the first place - if in any doubt, don´t.
 * Sure, it´s a hassle, but think about the photographer(s) would took the image in the first place - you would´nt have much change from $6k to get to Punte Del Norte just to have the chance of filming / photographing there. Add camera equipment costs etc etc etc and maybe it´s understandable that photographers get kinda upset when people just take their intellectual property. Thats why a clear CC license is so important SammytheSeal (talk) 15:18, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Let's review:


 * The lion and zebra pic came the site of photographer Don Getty and he did release the photo in CC.
 * The Dierre photo can from the site of the man who owns it. He gave permission for it to use it.
 * The Pygmy killer whale was taken by Liza Denning. I got her permission.
 * The barn owl was taken by Bert Kersey I got his permission.
 * The buffalo/lion and hyena/lion are from run by Craig Packer. he gave permisson to use.

If merely getting permission from them to use on wiki is not enough then fine, but don't say I just took the pics and didn't ask.

Bobisbob (talk) 16:53, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

that is exactly my point of interest! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.81.241.101 (talk) 00:00, 25 February 2008 (UTC)
 * Bobisbob, I never said you " just took the pics and didn't ask."- I said "The fact that the user uploading the image has a history of uploading copyrighted material " You´ve uploaded copyrighted material - the orca images.
 * Once again, getting permission to use "just on Wikipedia" is not enough, they have to be either public Domain images or released under CC. I´ll leave this now - it´s going nowhere SammytheSeal (talk) 18:13, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Common names
I´ve asked for a cite for this line The species is called Orca in most other European languages - Killer whale in English - sword or murder whale in german. Spekkhogger in Norwegian etc etc ...seems a pretty outragous claim tbh but I´m happy to be proved wrong :) SammytheSeal (talk) 19:18, 23 March 2008 (UTC)

mammals of Tasmania?
The first sentence of this article says that orcas are found everywhere. I suggest that even though they may be native everywhere, that it is silly to list every location in the world w/links; so instead, I think mammals of Tasmania and Western Australia should be removed.Bob98133 (talk) 13:56, 21 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I agree. For widely-distributed species we should just list continents, as we do on Common Raven, for example. Clayoquot (talk | contribs) 16:10, 21 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I agree with everyone else and also suggests that "Fauna of Greenland and Mammals of Japan" should be removed, as well.SWF Trainer (talk) 19:04, 21 April 2008 (UTC)

In response to this discussion, I removed all cetaceans from all the Australian state categories. However Bob98133 is now removing Category:Cetaceans of Australia, which I disagree with. Australia is a continent, and there's only nine of them. I think it is appropriate to categorise these articles by distribution at continental scale. Hesperian 13:29, 28 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Hi, Hesperian - sorry about that. I saw you adding this or similar catagories to dozens of pages and didn't realize you intended it to be the continent. Why not add all the continents then, instead of just Australia? I'll rvt the edits I did, if you haven't yet. Bob98133 (talk) 14:16, 28 April 2008 (UTC)

Orca attacks on humans AfD
See Articles for deletion/Orca attacks on humans. Clayoquot (talk | contribs) 07:00, 27 April 2008 (UTC)

Dorsal fin collapse
Is it certain that dorsal fin collapse only happens in captivity? I thought it was common in the wild as well. I think I even may have seen an Orca with curly dorsal fin in the wild outside Boston a long time ago. Mlewan 16:28, 18 June 2006 (UTC)

The reason why Orcas like Keiko for instance have a collapsed dorsal fin is because the tank he was being held in was to small. He couldn't grow properly and the water was to warm. Not saying Mexico is bad just saying they didn't take the best care of him the could have. >

Note: A comment has been removed by the person who posted it''. Clayoquot (talk | contribs) 05:10, 29 May 2008 (UTC)


 * My understanding is that dorsal fin collapse is very rare in wild orcas but relatively common among captives. The fact that your "widely known" facility can only come up with two "theories", then dismiss any possibility that this can be related to factors in captivity, belies your suggestion that Seaworld is an authority on orcas, other than in captivity. What's the theory for the recent dolphin death - I heard "freak accident". Do dolphins accidently kill each other or themselves in the wild? The information you are offering is POV from a beer and entertainment conglomerate who profit from captive orcas.Bob98133 (talk) 17:48, 29 April 2008 (UTC)


 * My understanding is that dorsal fin collapse is very rare in wild orcas but relatively common among captives. Depends on the which population and where.
 * Do dolphins accidently kill each other or themselves in the wild. Quite possibly, dolphins do kill harbour porpoises deliberately. As for them killing themselves, a lack of observational data there I´m afraid, but I would´nt rule the possibility out. *Edit* Missed this one ...Facinating stuff SammytheSeal (talk) 19:14, 29 April 2008 (UTC)
 * The information you are offering is POV from a beer and entertainment conglomerate who profit from captive orcas. Far be it from me to point this out to you but your own POV is showing. SammytheSeal (talk) 18:44, 29 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Further comment. The Rights or wrongs of keepings cetaceans in captivity are not relevant here. Are the theories proposed 's sources correct or not? Are the theories accepted by the scientific community? Are there other theories? By all means cite conflicting theories with cites and references. Don´t automatically assume that because the theories offered are cited from Aza or Seaworld that the theories must be wrong. SammytheSeal (talk) 19:04, 29 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Other editors disagreed about Seaworld being a good reference for dorsal fin collapse - see 23% talk below. I also see that other theories are proposed. My apologies to MirandaNB, but I would no more take Seaworld's word about orcas than I would Budweiser's word about beer. As far as I know, Seaworld does not do research on orcas in the wild, so whatever conclusion they reach would only apply to captive whales.Bob98133 (talk) 20:24, 29 April 2008 (UTC)


 * I looked at the aza.org website and couldn't find anything with a search for "orca" or "whale" or "dorsal". If someone can provide a link to specific pages with specific statements that dispute what is currently in the article, we might have a hope of a productive discussion. Clayoquot (talk | contribs) 06:38, 30 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Bob98133 - going by that point of view, we should also not take the word of lets say WDCS, WWF, Greenpeace, HSUS, Peta etc ad infinitum as all have there own agendas. It´s simply wrong to dismiss Seaworld because of who they are. If there are other theories then cite them - the more the better ;).Incidentally, Seaworld do ( or at least have in the past ) provided funding to various research projects on wild killer whale populations. I do not automatically assume that conclusions only apply to captive animals. SammytheSeal (talk) 07:00, 30 April 2008 (UTC)


 * I have learned in numerous genetics and animal anatomy courses at UCF that the dorsal fin collapse transpires from the Orca's genetics, body structure, and weight, which has been experimented, researched, and documented (Allometric Relationships and Sexual Dimorphism in Captive Killer Whales (Orcinus orca); Steven T. Clark and Daniel K. Odell; Journal of Mammalogy, Vol. 80, No. 3 (Aug., 1999), pp. 777-785  (article consists of 9 pages); Published by: American Society of Mammalogists).  Furthermore, I participated in an experimental research with SeaWorld's marine mammal researcher, concerning the directionality preferences of the Orcas and dorsal fin collapse.  From what I have learned in class and through the research, the cause of dorsal fin collapse and directionality preferences- in the wild or in marine facilities - does not affect the behavior, personality, or health of the animal.  Humans and numerous other animals exhibit right or left "handed" preferences and obviously so do the Orcas.  Thus, pool size and swimming patterns has nothing to do with the dorsal fin collapse, especially since some Orcas have documented clockwise  or counterclockwise patterns and their dorsal fin flops over to the opposite side of directionality.  Furthermore, dorsal fin collapse has been observed in numerous Orcas off the coast of Hawaii (http://home.comcast.net/~jlballou/orcas/index.html), California, Alaska, and Canada (http://www.orcanetwork.org/sightings/map.html), and in other whales / dolphins (http://muse.jhu.edu/login?uri=/journals/pacific_science/v059/59.4baird.pdf).  According to SeaWorld, "No one is exactly sure why the dorsal fins of killer whales bend, but it may have to do with genetics, injuries, or because the fins can be taller than many humans without any hard bones or muscles for support.  Scientists have a couple of theories as to why the dorsal fins of some killer whales flop over. One theory is that the surrounding water helps support the dorsal fin. A killer whale that spends more time at the surface, with its fin protruding out of the water, has a greater tendency for its fin to bend. Additionally, collagen becomes more flexible when warmed, such as if it is exposed to sunlight. Another theory supports a genetic tendency for a dorsal fin to bend. These two factors may work in combination or there may be other factors involved. The dorsal fin of an adult male killer whale can grow to six feet tall, which may be why their fins have a greater tendency to bend. Neither the shape nor the droop of a whale's dorsal fin are indicators of a killer whale's health or well-being" (http://www.seaworld.org/animal-info/info-books/killer-whale/physical-characteristics.htm and http://www.seaworld.org/ask-shamu/faq.htm#sw-animals).  In any case, I believe that there is no true answer to the collapse of dorsal fins because each pod lives in a different community, even the pods living within marine facilities.  Yes, it is more noticeable to observe dorsal fin collapse within marine facilities because it is rather difficult to track and maintain accurate statistics on wild Orcas.  Thus, individuals automatically blame marine facilities without adequate experimental and researched basis.  I believe the article needs to updated with the information I have provided, especially since more and more whale watchers are observing collapsed dorsal fins in wild Orcas and other wild marine mammals.  Furthermore, the study Steve Clark conducted states that genetics, body structure, and girth is another theory to dorsal fin collapse.  At least for SeaWorld's case, the swimming patterns of the Orcas does not determine the cause of collapsed dorsal fins.  I am unsure regarding other marine facilities, but I definitely know that the Orcas at SeaWorld are constantly observed 24/7 and various experimental research studies are observed and documented on them at all times.  Every move each Orca makes is documented!   SWF Trainer (talk) 14:24, 30 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I have located a number of references on this subject and will post a revision of the text to this talk page within a day or two.Bob98133 (talk) 16:19, 30 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Thanks SWF Trainer. It looks like the article is missing some significant points of view on the subject, which should be added and attributed to SeaWorld. The evidence that dorsal fin collapse in the wild is often associated with pathology needs to be kept, but if SeaWorld says its orcas with collapsed fins in captivity are perfectly healthy, that point should also be included. I don't have time right now to rewrite this section but will try to get to it in the next week if nobody else does. Best, Clayoquot (talk | contribs) 16:21, 30 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Update: I've removed the following as it is based on two sources that do not seem to meet our reliable sourcing criteria. One is a dead link whose contents are archived [here, and one is a messageboard. I've rewritten it with better (although biased) sources: One theory is that in deep ocean waters, the pressure the water exerts on the fin allows it to remain supported while the collagen hardens. In captivity, however, shallow tanks lack sufficient water pressure to produce this effect, and the fin collapses before the collagen solidifies. According to another theory, the Orca is almost always in a state of turning in a tank, since it is not large enough to allow swimming in one direction for any normal duration. The constant turning exerts pressure on the dorsal fin, which in turn causes it to collapse.  [[User:Clayoquot|Clayoquot]] (talk | contribs) 02:19, 5 May 2008 (UTC)
 * Another update: The section is now rewritten based on four sources. The NMFS report is the only source I know of that is both highly neutral and addresses the subject in a holistic way. SeaWorld and the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society both have a say; Seaworld's handwaving about "genetics" does not make any sense as an explanation for why captive whales have such a higher rate of dorsal fin collapse than their immediate families still in the wild. Visser's report is the fourth source. It is referred to in pages like this one:  http://www.seaworld.org/animal-info/info-books/killer-whale/physical-characteristics.htm without mentioning that the population is showing some signs of trouble in other ways. Wikipedia articles should put facts in their relevant context, and reflect the tone of the sources.
 * I was unable to find a source, from Seaworld or anyone else, specifically disputing the notion that the size (in surface area) of the pool contributes to dorsal fin collapse. This point of view exists on this talk page, obviously, but we need it to be sourced. If someone can find a source to provide this point of view, I would definitely support including it.
 * Issues involving captive cetaceans are an emotional topic, and I find it difficult to write about these things. FWIW I believe that the various opinions expressed above on this Talk page are held sincerely and in a spirit of love and respect for the animals. We have to include facts and opinions that represent all significant points of view on the subjects, and I hope our doing so is not taken personally. Clayoquot (talk | contribs) 03:42, 5 May 2008 (UTC)