Has anyone dove with Killer Whales?

[aggie99]

I was watching a show on Killer Wales and wondered if you can, or would want to dive with them in the wild. If so would it require a cage? Seeing them at Sea World flipping a person in the air makes you think you could but obviously they are trained from youth. Watching them in the wild flip a dying seal back and forth with their tail fin until it's dead makes me think NOT! They are incredibly smart so I am not sure if that would mean they would be more inquistive of divers or not. Regardless they are amazing animals with a complete language and social structure and accoridng to the show they are the most globally widespread mammal after humans. Thoughts??

[Osprey]

As far as I know, there have not been reports of wild orca attacks on people in the water. However, I think you should take precaution with any wild animal (after all, orcas taken from the wild at sea world have records of killing multiple people). I'd love to share water with them in the wild, cage excluded. If I get hit that's my fault

[Gombessa]

Yeah. These guys are HUGE, and some pods have no qualms about eating other mammals. I don't want to be the one that teaches them whether neoprene tastes good or bad.

[BuzzGA]

I managed to quiet the little voice in my head for a shark dive and ended up thinking it was great and while the thought of diving with orcas seems really cool, that little voice is just screaming no. But if there was a "safe"ish was to do it I would be willing to give it a try

[Gombessa]

Volunteer position at Sea World? Oh wait...

[wgt]

Originally Posted by Gombessa

Volunteer position at Sea World? Oh wait...

The wild ones don't worry too much about divers in the water, irrespective of whether they are resident or transient whales. They are also simply too smart and sensitive to be tricked into thinking that a diver is food. There are a few places where the resident whales are sufficiently concentrated that encounters with divers are possible. There are also occasional surprises -- a buddy of mine surfaced early from a crappy dive. He pulled his mask off, as his nose was bleeding. A killer surfaced right in front of him. He almost passed out.

[whse56]

While I think it would be one of the coolest adventures to be able to swim with something that is as beautiful and graceful as a killer whale. That being said I've got to think it would be like running across the African plain with a pride of lions. Granted killer whales are more intelligent than a lion but they are both wild animals and as such very unpredictable.

[Gombessa]

Don't underestimate lions!

[wgt]

Originally Posted by whse56

While I think it would be one of the coolest adventures to be able to swim with something that is as beautiful and graceful as a killer whale. That being said I've got to think it would be like running across the African plain with a pride of lions. Granted killer whales are more intelligent than a lion but they are both wild animals and as such very unpredictable.

If you jog past a pride of lions, you will be killed. There is little unpredictable about them in that sense. Wild adult killer whales, on the other hand, are apparently disinterested in humans.

[Gombessa]

Originally Posted by wgt

If you jog past a pride of lions, you will be killed. There is little unpredictable about them in that sense. Wild adult killer whales, on the other hand, are apparently disinterested in humans.

But if we take that at face value, there is neither anything less predictable nor more/less intelligent in the orcas' response.