The Norwegian sailing boat "Poniente", a Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 479, was the victim of an orca attack on 24 June just south of Cabo Espichel near the Portuguese city of Sasimbra. It was sailing just under the coast at a depth of 16 metres - in other words, in an area where sailors are advised to keep a safe distance from the orcas. For around thirty minutes, the orcas crashed into the yacht's rudder blade, severely damaging it. Fishermen rushed to the crew's aid and chased the killer whales away by circling around the "Poniente". The shipwrecked men were eventually guided by a lifeboat to the harbour of Sasimbra.
Old problem, new questions
For some years now, there have been increasing reports of Attacks on sailing yachts in the west of the Iberian Peninsula, the Bay of Biscay and especially the Strait of Gibraltar. The reasons for the behaviour of the predominantly young animals have been the subject of speculation ever since. Ideas range from aggressive behaviour towards enemies to playful interactions. The findings on the correct behaviour in the event of an encounter and how to avoid it seem just as vague.
The orcas have recently been quite quiet in the media. However, this is not because there have been fewer of these dangerous encounters; rather, they seem to have become the sad norm. In addition, many sailors are following what is probably the most tried and tested recommendation to date, namely to choose routes close to the coast within a depth range of 20 metres or less. Although researchers are trying to find an explanation for the behaviour and some initiatives are providing sighting and interaction data, sailing in the region remains a risky endeavour. The latest event is now adding to the uncertainty.
A sailor on a long voyage reports
Jörg Rüsenberg lives on his Contest 32 and sailed single-handed into the Mediterranean last year. Orcas were also an issue for him, but "I was less concerned about them when I crossed the Bay of Biscay," he says. "It's so big - why would they find me there of all people?" From A Coruña, he travelled together with another boat close to the coast, as recommended in popular apps, messenger groups and on websites if sailors want to avoid an encounter with orcas.
The boats travelled significantly more miles than on longer trips along the bays and rias. "From time to time, we also chose the shorter route when the line of shallow water went ten miles inland, but the direct route across the deeper water was only two miles long," he reports. On two occasions, the mini-flotilla experienced boats being attacked by orcas in their immediate vicinity. Nevertheless, they kept going, as they wanted to reach the Mediterranean before winter. "At some point, you get used to it," says Rüsenberg, describing the situation, "and you can't let it drive you crazy."
Information on orca sightings
Nevertheless, Jörg Rüsenberg did not approach the route planning lightly. Like many other sailors, he obtained the most important information about the activities of the orcas along the Iberian Peninsula from the website orcas.pt obtained. The privately operated website provides comprehensive behavioural tips and a map with all reported orca sightings and interactions between A Coruña and the Strait of Gibraltar. You can also report your own whale encounters there. In this way, a considerable or frightening number of reports have been collected since the beginning of 2023, depending on how you read it.
A glance at the map this year alone shows more than 120 sightings and almost 50 interactions between the southern Bay of Biscay and the Strait of Gibraltar, all with exact geographical position and date. Those who take out a free membership can also join the private Telegram group of orcas.pt. Jörg Rüsenberg praises the service: "Rui Alvez, the operator, is very committed and gets in touch with every single member if necessary."
The British Cruising Association (CA) provides similarly comprehensive information. It has set up its own orca project group, headed by Paul Lingard. The CA operates a special orca information and reporting portal at www.theca.org.uk/orcas. This portal offers extensive resources in English, French, Portuguese and Spanish. Sailors can not only call up information here, but should also submit their own reports on encounters or uneventful passages. Paul Lingard from the CA promptly got in touch when the skipper of the "Poniente" reported the attack on his boat on the Facebook page "Orca Attack Reports" and asked for a report to be posted on the CA website.
The Cruising Association is calling on all sailors to document and report encounters with orcas. Precise details of the location, time and course of the interaction are particularly valuable, as are reports of uneventful passages. The data collected will be shared with scientists and should help to develop long-term strategies for dealing with the orcas. The Cruising Association's orca project team is working closely with marine biologists and behavioural scientists to understand the reasons for the increase in interactions.
The reports submitted by sailors are analysed by the CA and summarised in an "Interaction Comments Library". This categorises various types of skipper behaviour, such as the use of noise or sand, and evaluates the effectiveness of different deterrent strategies. The CA also publishes comparative statistics from interaction reports and reports on uneventful passages.
Another important source of data is the monthly interaction maps of the Grupo Trabajo Orca Atlantica (GTOA). These maps provide an overview of current orca activity and can help sailors plan their routes. In the current case, however, based on the data from the GTOA, there was nothing to indicate the risk of an encounter; according to this map, the last interactions occurred in the wider vicinity of the encounter site in February and March of this year.
However, empirical data can also provide an indication of route planning. Based on reported data and its own research, the CA has compiled overview tables that Orca interactions by year and month for different coastal sections show. They give an indication of how likely an encounter with killer whales is in the individual months.
In addition to the web portals, there are also apps that provide real-time information on orca sightings and interactions. The CA particularly recommends the apps GT Orcas and Orcinus.
Behavioural recommendations
The players around the orca families and their relatively new behaviour, which is dangerous for sailors, provide a lot of data, but so far it has not been possible to make a real prediction for possible encounters with orcas from them. However Probabilities for orca interactions derived.
Nor do sailors know whether, in the event of an encounter, they are dealing with members of those killer whale families whose offspring - for whatever reason - are targeting the keels and rudder blades of sailing boats. For the time being, the only thing to do is to stay informed about the current situation, actively contribute to data collection and - as long as there are no recommendations to the contrary from the experts - navigate the zones with shallower water. The attack on the "Poniente" was only the second in shallow, coastal waters to be reported to the CA since data collection began in early 2022. All others took place further out.
