Bremer Canyon Giant Squid kill unfolded this morning as the Orca successful captured one of the oceans most mysterious creatures as the remains of their meal were left for all to see. It was a busy morning for the Orca as shortly after arriving we observed members of Alki and Queen’s family pod feasting on something delicious as the Shearwaters frantically dived all around them to capture any little morsel. The flesh being shared was white with tinges of vibrant orange and we suspected squid as the Orca finished up the last of their meal. Breaching just ahead captured our attention and as we approached the area a loud commotion of squabbling and high pitched squeaks could be heard as a cloud of Shearwaters and Albatross surrounded something very large. Approaching we could see to our amazement the remains of a Giant Squid floating at the surface and even with the arms and feeding tentacles missing there was still 1.5 meters remaining which had the seabirds very excited.
The eye could still be observed and it was interesting to see that the Orca had carefully fed on their favourite parts and left the remains for the sharks, fish and seabirds to feast on happily. It had been a great way to start the morning for the Orca as with full bellies they enjoyed some social time as members of Queen and Cheryl’s families mingled together. Giovanni was cheekily showing off to the girls and was displaying the typical belly up swim underneath the ladies much to their amusement. The calves weren’t overly interested in the flirty interactions as they kept themselves entertained with some playful chasing before settling in alongside their mums to begin foraging again into the early afternoon. During each season we can observe the Orca become more specific in their food preferences when times are good and after a few good weeks of consistent feeding they can afford to take the best parts of each meal. The wonderful thing about the Orca is there is never any wastage when they do leave larger amounts of their meal behind, it just means more food for all of the other creatures who depend on the success of the Orca to live a good life and have full bellies consistently.
