Nature can be brutal. But animals also help each other, sometimes in ways unimaginable to the human observers. For instance, take the case of killer whales and dolphins, two top marine predators. According to new research, these mammals appear to have forged a special relationship—which scientists caught on camera for the first time.
In a Scientific Reports study published on December 11, researchers describe how killer whales, or orcas, collaborate with Pacific white-sided dolphins to track and feast on salmon off the coasts of British Columbia, Canada. The partnership was far more sophisticated than the two species sharing a meal, the paper reported, as the tag team capitalized on the other’s natural strengths.
For example, orcas used dolphin echolocation cues to locate large salmon, which are typically “prey that dolphins cannot capture and swallow whole,” the researchers explained in a statement. Once caught, the orcas broke down the salmon into smaller pieces to share amongst themselves, giving dolphins the leftovers.
Pesky dolphins?
As with many of the best scientific discoveries, the researchers stumbled upon this partnership accidentally. The researchers initially hoped to investigate how and why the orca populations of northern Canada were thriving compared to their southern counterparts. But their work encountered an unexpected obstacle: dolphins everywhere.
“At first you’re like, ‘Oh, get out of here. We’re trying to do some research,’” Keith Holmes, study co-author and a geographer at Hakai Institute, recalled to CBC, admitting at some point getting “a little annoyed.”
But that soon changed once the researchers had a closer look. If anything, the orcas were following the dolphins, not the other way around. Using drones and suction-cup biologging tags, the team was able to get aerial and underwater footage of what was happening.
For roughly two years, the team recorded 258 unique events of dolphins traveling near tagged orcas. As the researchers reviewed the clips, they were mesmerized by what they saw.
Listen, catch, eat
The orcas were “sort of spread out and pinging through the water in a much broader area than what the whales can search—and the whale was listening,” Andrew Trites, study senior author and a marine biologist at the University of British Columbia in Canada, told CBC.
When the orcas read signs of large Chinook salmon in the vicinity, they quickly swam forward to deliver the killing bite, then shared the catch with their fellow orcas. After they were done, the dolphins arrived to feast on the leftover flesh and tissue.
There were no signs of any aggression during the whole process, Trites explained, although the killer whales could easily kill a dolphin if they wished to. “By working together, killer whales can conserve energy and use the dolphins as radar-equipped scouts to increase their chances of finding large Chinook salmon at deeper depths,” he added in the university statement.
The dolphins get predator protection and consistent access to “one of the ocean’s most prized fish,” Trites said. “It’s a win-win for everyone involved.”
Collaboration or exploitation?
That said, there could be other ways to interpret this situation, Janet Mann, a behavioral ecologist at Georgetown University uninvolved in the new research, told Scientific American. For instance, it could just be that the killer whales are exploiting the dolphins’ tracking abilities to find salmon, she said.
“I don’t think it’s been shown as cooperation because I think the standards for cooperation are a little bit higher,” Mann added. “It’s not like the dolphins wait for the killer whales to come and then they say, ‘Let’s go.’”
The researchers appear to be aware of this caveat, as in concluding the paper, they note that the extent to which this is a mutually beneficial relationship would require further studies. Additionally, it remains unclear whether this partnership subsists year-round or is limited to when there are high-value prey like the Chinook salmon nearby.
“This is just another piece of evidence of what kind of intricacies are happening out there,” Trites said.
Now, before you point out a certain something in the comments—yes, this is technically a dolphin-dolphin collaboration. Orcas (Orcinus orca) belong to the oceanic dolphin family Delphinidae, as do Pacific white-sided dolphins. And yes, orcas are dolphins—but they also qualify as whales. Toothed whales, to be precise.
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![These Are the 12 Ikea Products the Company’s Design Chief Personally OwnsThe Svarva lamp can be twisted into different shapes.
Courtesy of Johan EjdemoPS Svarva Floor Lamp“Some stuff I did myself, like this one. The Svarva lamp we made with the design group Front for the PS 2009 collection. They were quite newly established and so we did an armchair and this lamp. The desire was to do a wooden turned lamp, but you should also be able to twist it, articulate it.”“I felt that that would be very difficult to do. Along with a colleague in lighting at the time, I went to Hungary to this factory that was producing lamps for us. It was all metal tubes that they were doing, so we were a little bit hesitant whether they should be able to solve this. But they made some mock-ups based on the designer drawings. So we went there to have a look, and it was standing there. It was this floor lamp, and also a table lamp where the wooden beads were going in a circle and then up, like a snake.”“What we didn’t know was that next to the lamp factory was this factory that was doing the turned wooden beads, the small individual pieces that we put together. None of us knew that. It was just pure serendipity. So they were turning these wooden beads, and the lamp factory was putting them on the metal tubes, just like on a necklace. They had very little to do, so they were happy to get the business.”A Sinka Cabinet resides in Ejdemo’s hallway.
Courtesy of Johan EjdemoPS Sinka Cabinet“I have another favorite from that PS 2009 collection, it’s in my hallway. The PS Sinka, with the small drawers with a wooden base. Sinka means “dovetail” in Swedish, so the name explaining that construction.”“But the problem we had with this one was the packaging volume was too big. So what we did was each drawer is slightly shallower. So four drawers stack into each other. And four more drawers stack. There’s a little bit of a stopper in the back when you push them in, so they stop evenly at the front. There’s also a hidden compartment behind the smallest drawer. Really good drawers for all this stuff that is just lying around and getting in the way. In the top one I have all my keys that I no longer know where they go.”PS Jonsberg Vases“I have this vase from the PS collection to hold the cables [on my Samsung Serif TV]. It was a set, the Jonsberg vases by Hella Jongerius. There were four of them in different ceramic techniques. I had all four, but the terracotta one broke, which was a pity.” [It certainly is. These vases now sell secondhand for ,700 for a full set.]“They’re inspired by different regions, and the different techniques are beautiful. I use the big black one for toilet paper in one bathroom. It’s not disrespect for the design. It’s just such a good design to stand there, and it makes the bathroom beautiful, and it can fit the toilet roll. So, why have something like an ugly stick? It’s nice for that.”Pax Wardrobes“Pax. We have to mention Pax. I have Pax wardrobes in a few rooms, but also I’m a little bit peculiar. Like in the kitchen, these veneer doors have been sanded and hand-painted by me, just to make them fit my house, in my space. I repaint them sometimes.”Chipped Spraka pepper mills.
Courtesy of Johan EjdemoSpraka Pepper Mills“I have these pepper mills. One for white pepper, one for black pepper. That was also in a PS collection. We did these with Marcus Arvonen. These pepper mills are beautiful, and these have been around for, like, 20 years as well. They are pretty tall. A smaller version came later on, but I like these.”“They have their chips, yes, but this just makes them nicer. It’s age. They’ve been around and are used every day. Everything has a little bit of imperfection. You can spend your whole life bothering about that, but there should be some imperfection in life. Fix it? Then something else needs fixing. It just moves. Leave it, be proud.”Where’s the Billy Bookcase or Kallax?“I don’t have a Billy in the house now. But there have been! Kallax? I have owned many. Brilliant piece. Really good for vinyl, because that’s the time they come from. I listen to a lot of vinyl.”#Ikea #Products #Companys #Design #Chief #Personally #Ownsikea,design,home,furniture,household,interviews](https://i2.wp.com/media.wired.com/photos/6a33ff12acc128b064d51d9c/master/w_1600%2Cc_limit/IKEA%2520PS%2520SVARVA%25202.jpg?ssl=1 "These Are the 12 Ikea Products the Company’s Design Chief Personally OwnsThe Svarva lamp can be twisted into different shapes.
Courtesy of Johan EjdemoPS Svarva Floor Lamp“Some stuff I did myself, like this one. The Svarva lamp we made with the design group Front for the PS 2009 collection. They were quite newly established and so we did an armchair and this lamp. The desire was to do a wooden turned lamp, but you should also be able to twist it, articulate it.”“I felt that that would be very difficult to do. Along with a colleague in lighting at the time, I went to Hungary to this factory that was producing lamps for us. It was all metal tubes that they were doing, so we were a little bit hesitant whether they should be able to solve this. But they made some mock-ups based on the designer drawings. So we went there to have a look, and it was standing there. It was this floor lamp, and also a table lamp where the wooden beads were going in a circle and then up, like a snake.”“What we didn’t know was that next to the lamp factory was this factory that was doing the turned wooden beads, the small individual pieces that we put together. None of us knew that. It was just pure serendipity. So they were turning these wooden beads, and the lamp factory was putting them on the metal tubes, just like on a necklace. They had very little to do, so they were happy to get the business.”A Sinka Cabinet resides in Ejdemo’s hallway.
Courtesy of Johan EjdemoPS Sinka Cabinet“I have another favorite from that PS 2009 collection, it’s in my hallway. The PS Sinka, with the small drawers with a wooden base. Sinka means “dovetail” in Swedish, so the name explaining that construction.”“But the problem we had with this one was the packaging volume was too big. So what we did was each drawer is slightly shallower. So four drawers stack into each other. And four more drawers stack. There’s a little bit of a stopper in the back when you push them in, so they stop evenly at the front. There’s also a hidden compartment behind the smallest drawer. Really good drawers for all this stuff that is just lying around and getting in the way. In the top one I have all my keys that I no longer know where they go.”PS Jonsberg Vases“I have this vase from the PS collection to hold the cables [on my Samsung Serif TV]. It was a set, the Jonsberg vases by Hella Jongerius. There were four of them in different ceramic techniques. I had all four, but the terracotta one broke, which was a pity.” [It certainly is. These vases now sell secondhand for ,700 for a full set.]“They’re inspired by different regions, and the different techniques are beautiful. I use the big black one for toilet paper in one bathroom. It’s not disrespect for the design. It’s just such a good design to stand there, and it makes the bathroom beautiful, and it can fit the toilet roll. So, why have something like an ugly stick? It’s nice for that.”Pax Wardrobes“Pax. We have to mention Pax. I have Pax wardrobes in a few rooms, but also I’m a little bit peculiar. Like in the kitchen, these veneer doors have been sanded and hand-painted by me, just to make them fit my house, in my space. I repaint them sometimes.”Chipped Spraka pepper mills.
Courtesy of Johan EjdemoSpraka Pepper Mills“I have these pepper mills. One for white pepper, one for black pepper. That was also in a PS collection. We did these with Marcus Arvonen. These pepper mills are beautiful, and these have been around for, like, 20 years as well. They are pretty tall. A smaller version came later on, but I like these.”“They have their chips, yes, but this just makes them nicer. It’s age. They’ve been around and are used every day. Everything has a little bit of imperfection. You can spend your whole life bothering about that, but there should be some imperfection in life. Fix it? Then something else needs fixing. It just moves. Leave it, be proud.”Where’s the Billy Bookcase or Kallax?“I don’t have a Billy in the house now. But there have been! Kallax? I have owned many. Brilliant piece. Really good for vinyl, because that’s the time they come from. I listen to a lot of vinyl.”#Ikea #Products #Companys #Design #Chief #Personally #Ownsikea,design,home,furniture,household,interviews")
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