Scientists off the coast of South Australia caught a group of sperm whales using an unusual resource to defend themselves from orcas during a confrontation. The animals released a kind of ‘cloud of poop’ to protect themselves from rivals. The incident was carried out on March 19 by experts from the company Oceans Blueprint.
In an interview with Australian TV channel ABC, marine biologist Jennah Tucker says she saw sperm whales defend themselves from the orca attack. According to her, the whales defecated and shook their tails in the poop to scare away and confuse the orcas. The ‘diarrhea reserve’, as described by the biologist, helped the animals escape almost 30 orcas.
‘To carry out the poop attack, the group formed a circle with their heads together and wagged their tails in sync. This is called a rosette, another defensive mechanism they use when under attack. Because a sperm whale’s diet consists mainly of squid, they actually have really reddish colored poo,’ Jennah said.
Scientists have rarely observed sperm whales using this defense mechanism, which is also used by other animal species such as monkeys, meerkats and birds.
