Killer Whales Quotes

“The orca’s big brain was bigger than he had hoped—five times the size of a human’s and weighing in at nearly fifteen pounds. And this was from a young whale, not a mature adult. The brain was also more complicated than McGeer had imagined—more complicated than a human brain. Dolphin brains were impressive, but this brain was spectacular.”
― Mark Leiren-Young, The Killer Whale Who Changed the World

“In an age when whales were judged by how easy it was to render them into oil, or grind them into pet food and fertilizer, killer whales were a problem even if they weren’t killing humans.”
― Mark Leiren-Young, The Killer Whale Who Changed the World

“We now know that killer whales are one of the very few mammalian species that can learn new sounds and reproduce them. Dogs and cats, for example—there’s not a chance you could teach a dog to meow or a cat to bark. It’s a very rare ability to learn sounds and reproduce them. We can do it, as humans. Some primates can. Some of the whales can. The calls Moby Doll made in 1964—we still hear today from his kin group that still exists out there. If all roads lead to Rome, all oceans lead to Moby Doll.”
― Mark Leiren-Young, The Killer Whale Who Changed the World

“People had considered this the most fearsome creature on the planet. The most vicious. The most predatory. Without any rivals. It could beat anything in the ocean, so, therefore, it qualified as the most feared of all beasts. Totally wrong. So I guess Moby Doll changed the world’s attitudes towards killer whales. Instead of seeing a killer—a savage monster like Moby Dick—the world met a cuddly companion, Moby Doll.”
― Mark Leiren-Young, The Killer Whale Who Changed the World

“For a long time, humans have wondered about the possibility of intelligent life on other planets while ignoring the intelligent life on this one. Orcas have a language and a culture that predates ours, so how do we justify imprisoning them or, more importantly, destroying their habitat?”
― Mark Leiren-Young, The Killer Whale Who Changed the World

“Human groups who find themselves hunting in the same territory are almost expected to fight. For the most part, regardless of the continent they’re on or their culture, it’s rare when they don’t battle over land or resources. But the orca culture is more ancient than ours and, apparently, more civilized. Killer whales don’t just share food; they share the same sectors of the seas without challenging each other to determine dominance. This is true for orca families found in every ocean in the world.”
― Mark Leiren-Young, The Killer Whale Who Changed the World

“Every bar that’s set to prove human superiority to orcas seems to be as easy for the whales to jump as the hurdles set out for them at SeaWorld. Orcas fit every definition for humanity humans have come up with that doesn’t require opposable thumbs.”
― Mark Leiren-Young, The Killer Whale Who Changed the World

“In 1964, no one was watching whales for fun. Today, every orca in the Salish Sea is a star.”
― Mark Leiren-Young, The Killer Whale Who Changed the World

“The southern residents are the most photographed, filmed, recorded, and documented mammals on the planet who aren’t either running a country or headlining Hollywood blockbusters.”
― Mark Leiren-Young, The Killer Whale Who Changed the World

“Regardless of how scientists may feel about respecting the history of the name, there’s no world in which “killer” sounds like a safe species to swim with. If you’re on their menu, the name is accurate, but if you’re not—and we’re clearly not—it’s an archaic holdover from an ancient era that makes it harder to save this vital species.”
― Mark Leiren-Young, The Killer Whale Who Changed the World

“Orcas and some other large whales have spindle neurons in their brains. These are cells that process emotion humans thought existed only in apes and us. Spindle neurons have been called the cells that make us human. They're the part of the brain that deals with complex emotions like love, guilt, grief and even embarrassment. Since these are the cells that allow us to feel deeply, isn't it likely they do the same for orcas?”
― Mark Leiren-Young, Orcas Everywhere: The Mystery and History of Killer Whales

“Orcas continually prove there are more things in the ocean than are dreamt of in our science.”
― Mark Leiren-Young, Orcas Everywhere: The Mystery and History of Killer Whales

“Scientists warn that if orcas can't survive, we won't either.”
― Mark Leiren-Young, Orcas Everywhere: The Mystery and History of Killer Whales

“But what if the capture of the young calf had never occurred? Tilikum might still be swimming free in the frigid waters of the North Atlantic, chasing his cherished herring, perhaps alongside his mother. He might be surrounded by siblings, nieces, and nephews, and his grandmother might still be leading the pod.

An oceanic Tilikum would be gliding through his boundless home with fearless power and majestic grace, his fin erect, his teeth intact, his interactions with humans minimal and nonlethal. There would be no need for gelatin or Tagamet, antibiotics or isolation.

And of course, if Tilikum had never been wrenched away from his family and friends, entirely for the amusement of humans, the family and friends of Keltie Byrne, Daniel Dukes, and Dawn Brancheau might not be grieving to this day.

Tilikum was trying to tell us something. It was time to listen.”
― David Kirby

“But what if the capture of the young calf had never occurred? Tilikum might still be swimming free in the frigid waters of the North Atlantic, chasing his cherished herring, perhaps alongside his mother. He might be surrounded by siblings, nieces, and nephews, and his grandmother might still be leading the pod.

An oceanic Tilikum would be gliding through his boundless home with fearless power and majestic grace, his fin erect, his teeth intact, his interactions with humans minimal and nonlethal. There would be no need for gelatin or Tagamet, antibiotics or isolation.

And of course, if Tilikum had never been wrenched away from his family and friends, entirely for the amusement of humans, the family and friends of Keltie Byrne, Daniel Dukes, and Dawn Brancheau might not be grieving to this day.

Tilikum was trying to tell us something. It was time to listen.”
― kirby david

“Tragically, the average life expectancy during this era for captive orcas stood between one to four years. Aquariums often went through a whole series of whales before just one of them made it into adolescence. Today, the life expectancy of captive killer whales has improved: rising to about ten years. Yet this is still a far cry from the thirty to sixty years that orcas can live in the ocean.”
― Jason Hribal, Fear of the Animal Planet: The Hidden History of Animal Resistance

“Then Jack Hanna joined the fray: “How are you going to love something, Larry, unless you see something? You can’t love something and save something unless you see it.”
Naomi had heard this argument before. It was ridiculous on its face, she thought. What about dinosaurs? People, and especially kids, were crazy about dinosaurs. They loved them, without ever having laid eyes on a single one.”
― David Kirby, Death at SeaWorld by David Kirby (9-Oct-2013) Paperback