Killer whales, or orcas, are apex saltwater predators, swimming through every ocean and dining on a remarkable variety of prey — even slaughtering great white sharks for their livers and killing blue whales. At Live Science, you can learn all about these phenomenal mammals, including why orca males are burnouts and the reason killer whales get sick in captivity. Marvel at extremely rare white killer whales and other exciting sightings with the latest orca news, features and articles from our expert writers and editors.
Discover more about orcas
—Orcas: Facts about killer whales
—Orcas have sunk 3 boats in Europe and appear to be teaching others to do the same. But why?
Latest about Orcas
Incredible, first-of-their-kind images show an orca being born in Norway — and the rest of its pod forming a protective circle
Scientists with the Norwegian Orca Survey and Orca Channel have documented, for the first time and in astounding detail, the birth of an orca and the newborn's first hour.
Orcas in the Gulf of California paralyze young great white sharks before ripping out their livers
An orca pod that made headlines last year for gutting a whale shark has struck again, this time perfecting a technique that involves paralyzing young great white sharks to eat their livers.
'We completely freaked out': Orcas are attacking boats in Europe again
Iberian orcas have damaged several boats off the coast of Spain in recent weeks, leaving authorities scrambling to rescue stranded crews.
Watch a pod of orcas pretending to drown one of their own in macabre training session
Footage from the BBC's new nature series "Parenthood" shows orcas practicing an important blue whale-hunting technique on each other.
Wild orcas offer humans food. Could they be trying to make friends — or manipulate us?
Researchers have documented orcas dropping prey and other marine life in front of humans, as if offering us food. The orcas' motives are uncertain, but the sharing behavior could be an attempt at a cross-species relationship or manipulation.
Still frame from video footage recorded in the Kvænangen fjords, Norway, in 2024, showing the tongue-nibbling interaction between two free-ranging killer whales.
Footage captures a pair of orcas nibbling each other's tongues in the Kvænangen fjords in northern Norway. Scientists think this rarely seen behavior could play a role in social bonding.
Salmon-hat wearing orcas also give each other massages with kelp, scientists discover
Orcas have been spotted giving each other rubdowns with kelp tools, rubbing pieces of the seaweed between their bodies.
Living lunch box? Iceland orcas are unexpectedly swimming with baby pilot whales, but it's unclear why.
Newborn pilot whales have been spotted mysteriously swimming among pods of orcas. Scientists are trying to puzzle out how the pilot whale calves got there and what happened to them.
