by L.S. Watts

Created on: June 14, 2010

Orcas, more commonly know as killer whales, are social creatures. Because they are so social, researchers are still trying to learn more about how the social structures of orcas work. Few researchers have been lucky enough to observe them up close and personal in their habitat for a lengthy period of time to be able to completely understand these amazing creatures.

What we do know is that orcas travel in pods. These pods are matriarchal and consist of immediate and extended family groups. Since orca offspring rarely leave home many orca pods consist of four generations all directly related to the eldest female in the maternal group. These pods can consist of several maternal groups, growing a pod’s number to around ten to twenty whales. Each pod of orcas will to work together as a group on everything. They hunt together, play together, watch and care for their young together.

One thing that is interesting about killer whales is that each pod has its own unique vocalization dialects. Some pods that share a similar dialect is believed to have the same ancestor in common. These different pods are considered to be a part of the same clan. Clans are pods that are closely related to each other by a common ancestor.

These clans tend to travel the same range around the same time. This is called a community of killer whales. Researchers are still unclear on whether different communities of killer whales actually cross paths because they have yet to see this occur.

Another interesting fact about orca pods is that there are three types of pods: resident, transient, and offshore. These different types of pods are characterized in many different ways. Some of these include the dorsal fin shape, distinct calls, ranges, and pod size.

Resident Pods

The most commonly known pod type would be resident pods. These pods tend to be more stable and can have more than fifty whales and tend to be split up into smaller sub-groups of ten or more. The dorsal fins of resident pods tend to be rounded with the edge being straight or curved back slightly. Even the saddle is another distinctive feature. It is typically gray with a variety of black.

The vocalization of resident pods also sets them apart from other types of pods. The resident pods have around seven to seventeen distinctive calls. When hunting, they will spread out to look for prey. These distinct calls help them locate each other as well as communicate where the prey is located. Although resident orca pods are seen among

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