A harbor seal narrowly escaped becoming prey to a pod of killer whales near Seattle, according to wildlife photographer Charvet Drucker, who captured the close encounter on video during a whale-watching trip.
Drucker told The Associated Press she was aboard a rented 20-foot boat near her home in the Salish Sea, about 40 miles northwest of Seattle, when she spotted at least eight orcas — also known as killer whales — coordinating a hunt.
Through her camera lens, Drucker saw a harbor seal fleeing the pod and even caught a photo of the animal airborne above the churning water.
“At first, I thought I was watching its last moments,” Drucker said.
As the whales closed in, the group on board cut their engine, following wildlife boating rules meant to protect orcas.
Moments later, the seal leapt from the water onto the boat’s small swim platform, taking refuge just feet from the motor.
“You poor thing,” Drucker can be heard saying in her cellphone footage. “You’re good, just stay, buddy.”
The orcas didn’t give up right away.
Drucker’s video shows the whales circling and diving in formation, appearing to work together to create waves that rocked the boat — a “wave-washing” technique that has been documented by scientists since the 1980s, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
At least once, the seal slipped back into the water but managed to climb aboard again.
After roughly 15 minutes, the orcas swam off.
Drucker, who has photographed orcas hunting seals before, said she was torn this time.
“I’m definitely Team Orca, all day, every day,” she told the AP. “But once that seal was on the boat, I kind of turned Team Seal.”
The whales Drucker encountered are believed to be Bigg’s, or “transient,” orcas — a population that hunts seals and other marine mammals.
NOAA says these transient orcas are thriving compared to the endangered “resident” orcas that rely primarily on salmon for food.
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