In the Gulf of California, a pod of orcas has developed a taste for shark liver. Researchers have now documented multiple attacks on juvenile great white sharks, revealing a hunting method that’s both efficient and a bit unsettling. The whales flip their prey upside down, inducing paralysis before tearing out the organ and sharing it among the group.
The study, published in Frontiers in Marine Science, describes three separate attacks carried out by Moctezuma’s pod, an orca group already known for aggressive behavior. In 2020, five females were observed chasing a young white shark until it tired, turning it onto its back, and surfacing moments later with its liver in their mouths. They struck again soon after, gutting a second shark. Two years later, the pod repeated the tactic, leaving behind a scene of blood and shredded tissue near the surface.
Lead researcher Jesús Erick Higuera Rivas, a marine biologist with Conexiones Terramar, said the whales exploit a reflex called tonic immobility. “This temporary state renders the shark defenseless, allowing the orcas to extract its nutrient-rich liver and likely consume other organs as well,” he said. The liver of a great white is loaded with fat, making it one of the most energy-dense meals in the ocean.
Orcas in Mexico Are Paralyzing Young Great Whites and Eating Their Livers
Marine ecologist Salvador Jorgensen of California State University, Monterey Bay, said this behavior may expose a learning curve in younger sharks. “Adult white sharks react quickly to hunting orcas, completely evacuating their seasonal gathering areas and not returning for months. But these juvenile white sharks may be naive to orcas,” he explained.
Choosing smaller sharks reduces the risk of retaliation. It also highlights the orcas’ ability to adapt, strategize, and teach. Higuera Rivas called it proof of “advanced intelligence and social learning,” with hunting styles passed down within pods.
Warming waters could be fueling these encounters. Great white nurseries are shifting closer to Mexican waters, possibly driven by climate patterns like El Niño. With more juveniles entering orca territory, Moctezuma’s pod appears to be refining its technique in real time.
For decades, the great white has been cast as the ocean’s apex predator. Watching a killer whale roll one over and gut it like a training exercise shows that might not be the case.
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