Term
| Killer Whales belong to which scientific family |
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Definition
| Killer Whale belong to the Delphinidae family. They are the largest species in the dolphin family. |
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Term
| Why are Killer Whales called Killer Whales? |
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Definition
| Killer whales earned their name because they frequently kill other whales. Sailors who witnessed these attacks called them "whale killers" |
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Term
| How do scientists categorize a geographically isolated group of killer whales? |
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Definition
| As a management tool, a geographically isolated group is categorized as a STOCK. |
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Term
| How are Killer Whales categorized in the Antarctic? |
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Definition
| Killer whales in the Antarctic are categorized into 4 types (A,B,C and D)depending on their distribution: circumpolar, inshore near pack ice, inshore in the Eastern Antarctic and in the sub-Antarctic. |
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Term
| How are Killer Whales in the Northern Pacific categorized? |
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Definition
In the North Pacific stocks are either transient or resident and even broken down further by distribution.
The Northern Resident stock occurs from the top half of Vancouver Island through Alsaka.
The Southern Resident Stock occurs from the lower half of Vancouver Island south through Washington State.
The transient Stock is found from Alaska's Aleutian Islands to Southern California. |
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Term
| Killer Whales have a worldwide distribution, but where are they most abundant? |
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Definition
| Killer Whales are most abundant in the coastal waters of the Arctic, Antarctic and areas of cold water upwelling. |
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Term
| Explain why a killer whale's dorsal fin would bend. Does this happen only in zoological parks? |
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Definition
| The Killer Whales Dorsal Fin is made of a dense fibrous connective tissue without the support of bones or cartilage. The dorsal fin of an adult male can reaching a height of 6 ft and weight up to 180 lbs. Killer whales have been seen with dorsal fins that are curved, wavy, twisted, scarred or bent in both zoological parks and in the ocean. |
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Term
| How do scientists identify killer whales in their natural environment? |
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Definition
| Each individual Killer Whale has a distinct dorsal fin and saddle patch that can be identified through photographs. |
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Term
| Describe the social hierarchy of a killer whale pod. |
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Definition
| The social hierarchy within a killer whale pod is female dominant (matriarchal). The pod is a cohesive long term social unit. |
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Term
| Describe how Killer Whales cooperatively hunt for food. |
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Definition
| Killer whales work together to encircle and herd small prey before attacking. They have also been observed using a "carousel-feeding" technique where they cooperatively herded small fish into a tight ball close to the surface. Then the whales shun the fish with their tail flukes and eat the stunned fish. To hunt a large baleen whale, a pod may attack from several angles. Transient pods Killer whales also "sneak attack" marine mammals most often hunt silently or quietly. |
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Term
| Seaworld has the most successful killer whale breeding program in the world. When was the first successful birth? |
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Definition
| The first successful killer whale birth at SeaWorld was Kalina. She was born in Sept. 1985 at SeaWorld Orlando. She is the first killer whale successfully bred, born and raised to adulthood in a zoological park. |
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Term
| Name the Killer Whale calves born at SWSA. |
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Definition
Kayla - November 1988 SWO
Keet - February 1993 SWSD
Sakari - January 2010 SWSA |
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Term
| Why is AI (artificial insemination) important for the success of our killer whale population? |
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Definition
| Managing genetic diversity is much easier using AI. Instead of transport adult whales, semen samples can be sent from one park to another. |
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Term
| How are Killer Whales opportunistic feeders? |
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Definition
| Killer Whales generally eat prey that is most available to them. |
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