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Revenge of the Whales

An Animal Behavior Story

By Isla Kaye ThistlePublished 2 years ago 4 min read
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Revenge of the Whales
Photo by Todd Cravens on Unsplash

The deep melodramatic moan of a grieving humpback whale is carried by the current. Sound waves spread throughout the underwater realm and carry a message that transcends species' language barriers. Everything from the brown pelicans skimming the surface of the sea to the Marianas snailfish five miles down understands the pain being communicated.

A humpback calf was killed by an orca. It was a nightmarish display. Three killer whales surrounded mother and calf. The baby cried as he was dragged to his demise. His mother fought back, as any whale mother would, but even the most powerful lash of her large fluke was not enough to fend off three hungry sets of sharp teeth. The battle lasted over an hour, but the end result was a victory for the orcas and a tragic loss for the humpbacks.

The humpback mother sang her sad tale of woe to all who would listen. Other pods picked it up too and told of the horrible death of one of their own. Even humans who listen to the whale’s song of the dead describe it as haunting despite not understanding the message it carries.

The orcas divided. Those who felt empathy towards the humpbacks formed a truce with the other whales and became solely pescetarians. Those with more hardened hearts continued on their course of consuming mammals. They hunted as packs like wolves of the sea, targeting the weak and defenseless. In memory of the murdered calf, the humpbacks decided to be the defenders of the hunted.

The pod of orcas hunted in vain day after day. They tried to target more whale calves, but found them all to be heavily guarded not only by mothers, but by groups of males as well who had taken to traveling with mothers and calves through more dangerous waters. The orcas were able to satiate themselves by plucking seabirds from the water as they dove down for fish, but the small nuggets of avian flesh were not enough to sustain the whales long-term. They wanted a larger kill. So they set their sights on the seals.

The seals liked to take refuge on chunks of ice whenever an orca was spotted, but the orcas wouldn’t let that stop them. They knew how to break the ice. A calculated and perfectly placed assault against the ice would fracture it into pieces. One by one, the pod rammed the floating ice. Bit by bit, they broke it into smaller and smaller chunks. Soon, the poor frightened seal was stranded on a small floating island barely bigger than himself. It seemed his fate was in the flippers of his assaulters.

But the struggle wasn’t over yet. The morning mother humpback heard the coordinated attack of the orca pod. She remembered their voices well and she knew just what they were up to. She charged off, the rest of her pod following closely. They arrived on the scene just as one of the orcas rammed the corner of the floating ice so hard it flipped over completely and the seal was dunked into the frigid water.

The seal’s body, twisting and struggling to escape the pod of orcas, reminded the humpback mother of her own lost calf. She propelled herself forward with a powerful push from her tail and barged her way into the middle of the scene. With a quick twist of her body, she maneuvered under the seal and lifted it up out of the water by resting it on her stomach.

The orcas came in for the assault, determined not to lose their prey, but this time the mother whale was not alone. Three of her comrades rushed forward to take on the orcas. The orcas flashed their dagger-like white teeth. The humpbacks had no teeth. They were not a predatory species and their mouths were lined with the characteristic baleen on filter feeders. Their tails, however, were powerful enough to knock an orca into a daze. Some of the older humpbacks even had barnacles growing on their flukes that proved to be an additional help, as the sharp ridges would slice at the orcas with each powerful blow. The battle was over in minutes. The orcas retreated and the mother humpback rose out of the water and delivered the seal to safety. The act of service did not bring her child back; nothing could do that. But all the same, she felt a sense of renewed purpose within her. The orcas may have eaten her beloved child, but she would not make sure they never hunted mammalian flesh again.

She shared her plan with other pods by singing her haunting song of woe. Now, humpbacks have developed quite a reputation as the defenders of the weak and many come running as soon as they hear the hunting calls of any meat-eating orcas.

Short Story
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About the Creator

Isla Kaye Thistle

Aspiring Fiction Writer

Avid animal lover.

Voracious Reader.

Outdoor explorer.

Pet Mom

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