Killer Whales Keep Attacking Boats in Europe — Scientists Think They Know Why

Something unusual has been happening off the coast of the Iberian Peninsula for the past five years, and it shows no signs of stopping. A small group of orcas has been targeting sailboats, disabling their rudders, and in some cases sinking vessels entirely. More than 700 documented encounters have been recorded since 2020. At least eight boats have gone to the bottom. Hundreds more have been damaged.

The story gets stranger: scientists are increasingly convinced the orcas are not attacking at all. They are playing. And they are teaching their young to do the same.

Where and When Is This Happening?

The encounters are concentrated along the Atlantic coast of the Iberian Peninsula, primarily in the Strait of Gibraltar, the Portuguese coast, the Gulf of Cadiz, and waters off Galicia in northwestern Spain. This is the migration corridor for Atlantic bluefin tuna, which is the primary food source for the Iberian orca, a critically endangered subpopulation of fewer than 50 individuals that is genetically distinct from other orca populations in the North Atlantic.