Today, guides at KAW had the enormous pleasure of meeting Dan Olsen, who researches killer whales in Alaska. It was amazing to hear from someone so knowledgeable about such an incredible animal. A few fun facts I learned about the killer whale:
Another name for killer whales is "orcas." That's from their Latin name, Orcinus orca. I always thought that 'killer whale' was inaccurate, but it turns out all scientific research calls them killer whales. The takeaway? Both "killer whales" and "orcas" are correct, use whichever one floats your boat.
Most researchers agree that they should be divided into two species. Most of what are now killer whales will remain so. But what we call "transient" killer whales would become "Bigg's killer whales." This reflects a combination of genetic analysis, observations of interbreeding (it seems to be possible but basically never happen), and observations of behavior.
In terms of echolocation, they make squeaks and clicks and calls through their noses/blowholes. Then they listen for reflected sound using their jawbones!
Orcas are able to make two sounds at once by independently controlling the two "nostrils" on their backs. These are called biphonic calls, and may be used to communicate location to other individuals.
Most of the time, they're identified visually, by their dorsal fins. However, Dan reports that it's actually easier to identify them by their calls. It requires the use of a hydrophone (underwater microphone) and some training, but he claims he's much more accurate using sound than sight.
Up next
Tomorrow we get the long-awaited glacier talk, plus a drysuit session. It looks like we'll be practicing a few final rescue techniques, including the hand of god rescue, which should be very exciting to rehearse. Hint: for the rescuee, it involves sitting upside-down for a while in the water.