Killer Whales: Unique Behaviours & Significant Role in Ecosystems - Essay Sample

Introduction

Killer whales are sea creatures normally characterized by having teeth which they use to attack and kill other animals. In spite of the fact that they live in the same environment with marine creatures like fish, it is different from in almost all dimensions. According to Samarra et al. (2018), they have a variety of preys. They have a significant role to play in their habitat and in the environment as a whole. This mostly manifests as a result of their unique behaviors which make them outstanding among the animals around them. This paper discusses the killer whales on criteria like their life history, their importance in nature, their current environmental issue, why they exist, how they kill animals and the issues around birth.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Order now

Their Life History

Killer whales have existed in their various habitats for many centuries. They have evolved for many years to become the present day animals living in the marine environment. they came to exist a number of years before the evolution of humans. The whales can live for a period of 100 years before they die. The average life expectancy for the male is approximately 60-80 years while it is only 50 for the female ones (Foote et al, 2016). The life expectancy also appears to reduce with time-based on the various problems they face in contemporary society. This implies that in the future, it will further drop if the various environmental problems existing in their environments are not managed properly.

Their Importance in Nature

The animals have a role to play in the balance of nature. For example, they make the important aspect of ecology complete in the environment. They play a considerable role in the aspects of food chain whereby they help in the elimination of some animals they consume as their prey. They control the occurrence of dangerous animals in the water, as a natural resource. They achieve this by hunting and killing animals like leopards and other deadly snakes which may make the environment unsafe. It is not easy o find such animals around the points in which whales live. This implies that they help in making some parts of the world safe for the operation of human beings.

Their Current Environmental Issue

Changes in the environment occur as the greatest threat to the lives of the killer whales. Human activities lead to the introduction of chemical pollutants from both agricultural and industrial activities which have claimed the lives of many killer whales. Significant populations of the animals have dropped in number in many water bodies in which they live because of the problem (Jourdain, Vongraven, Bisther & Karoliussen, 2017). Besides, noise pollution is another problem which interferes the normal operation and behaviors of the killer whales. Humans have failed to manage these issues properly and therefore the population of the animals has been significantly dropping over the years. There will fewer whales in the water bodies if the pollutants are not properly managed.

Figure SEQ Figure \* ARABIC 1: killer whale dies as a result of pollution

Why they Exist

Some of the behaviors of the killer whales which lead to the ecological lance reveal why they exist. For example, the animals prey on fish especially herring which almost have the highest population in the marine setting. By preying on them, they cut down the pollution, therefore, helping in the management of the population so that the available resources become enough for the number of animals in a given habitat (Mann & Karniski, 2017). The available space in the habitat, therefore, remains enough for the resulting population. Their role remains active since they occupy the apex in the food chain in that no animals on which they pry that is able to attack them. Consequently, their attack on most animals is therefore important and which they exist to accomplish.

How They Kill Animals

Killer whales kill by hunting which is normally accomplished on the social ground among them. They hunt in groups or on an individual basis. They learn to hunt amongst themselves to ensure that they always meet their preying targets. They take their time to spot prey and attack which they finally kill and share (Samarra et al., 2018). They have very strong teeth which they use to tears the flesh of their pry to weaken them and then kill them easily. They also find it a less challenging task to kill animals while in the water rather than on the land. The leopards and other animals living on land that they kill are killed when they interact in the water environment.

Figure SEQ Figure \* ARABIC 2: killer whale hunting in water

Birth

Killer whales give birth to the young one in the water. This occurs approximately 9-18 months after conception. They can give birth to live calves or experiences spontaneous abortion depending on their health condition and the availability of foods during the period they are expecting (Wasser et al., 2017). The birth weight of the calves also depends on the nutrition available to them during the pregnancy period. They share many characteristics with the higher mammals son this context; for example, the interval of calving varies with factors like the conditions they are experiencing in their environment.

Figure SEQ Figure \* ARABIC 3: killer whale giving birth to a young one

References

Foote, A., Vijay, N., Avila-Arcos, M., Baird, R., Durban, J., & Fumagalli, M. et al. (2016). Genome-culture coevolution promotes rapid divergence of killer whale ecotypes. Nature Communications, 7(1). Doi: 10.1038/ncomms11693

Jourdain, E., Vongraven, D., Bisther, A., & Karoliussen, R. (2017). A first longitudinal study of seal-feeding killer whales (Orcinus orca) in Norwegian coastal waters. PLOS ONE, 12(6), e0180099. Doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0180099

Mann, J., & Karniski, C. (2017). Diving beneath the surface: long-term studies of dolphins and whales. Journal Of Mammalogy, 98(3), 621-630. Doi: 10.1093/jmammal/gyx036

Samarra, F., Bassoi, M., Beesau, J., Eliasdottir, M., Gunnarsson, K., & Mrusczok, M. et al. (2018). Prey of killer whales (Orcinus orca) in Iceland. PLOS ONE, 13(12), e0207287. Doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0207287

Wasser, S., Lundin, J., Ayres, K., Seely, E., Giles, D., & Balcomb, K. et al. (2017). Population growth is limited by nutritional impacts on pregnancy success in endangered Southern Resident killer whales (Orcinus orca). PLOS ONE, 12(6), e0179824. Doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0179824