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Port and Starboard, the orca pair that were first observed predating great white sharks in 2017, were recently found to have killed as many as 17 sharks in a single day, according to researchers at Marine Dynamics.

Port and Starboard (pictured) are named for the direction in which their dorsal fins flop (Photo: Christine Wessels/Marine Dynamics Conservation Trust)

The orcas, known to have preyed on several different species of shark in South Africa, were tracked offshore at Pearly Beach, near Gansbaai, by a team of scientists on board a Marine Dynamics vessel.

‘We observed the two orcas repeatedly diving down in a small area for almost two hours before they departed offshore,’ said Marine Dynamics researcher, Ralph Watson, in a post on group’s Facebook page.

The following Tuesday, eleven deceased Broad nose seven-gill shark carcasses were retrieved from the same beach by Watson and the MDA team.

More about orca predation of Sharks

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ALSO SEE: www.capetownetc.com/news/killer-whales-linked-to-shark-deaths-in-gansbaai/


 

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