Researchers have recorded what appears to be a previously unknown hunting strategy used by orcas, with underwater footage showing the marine mammals slamming into giant sunfish at high speed until the fish burst into pieces.
According to CNN, the remarkable behaviour was captured in two separate incidents during 2024 and 2025 in the Mexican Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of California. The findings have now been published in the journal Frontiers in Ethology.
Rare Footage Captures Unusual Attack
The first incident was filmed on July 29, 2024, by lead study author Kathryn Ayres, a research scientist with the marine conservation organisation Beneath the Waves. Ayres was working as a diving guide near San Jose del Cabo in Mexico when she witnessed the event. Ayres said she had previously seen orcas working together to ram a whale shark, but watching a giant sunfish break apart into countless pieces was unlike anything she had seen before. She recalled being shocked as she watched the attack unfold underwater.
How the Orcas Worked Together
The videos showed two orcas hunting as a team. One whale held a giant sharptail sunfish by its tail while another accelerated towards it at high speed.
Just before the collision, the first orca released the fish. The second then crashed into it with such force that the sunfish exploded into hundreds of fragments.
Young orcas quickly fed on the drifting pieces while the adults continued eating the remains.
According to CNN, the sharptail sunfish is one of the world's heaviest fish. It can weigh more than 1,800 kilograms and grow up to three metres long.
Orcas are known for hunting large prey through teamwork, but scientists say this body-slamming technique has never been formally documented before.
Researchers described it as an entirely new behaviour, highlighting how different orca populations continue to surprise scientists with unique hunting strategies.
The attack may help younger whales feed by breaking large prey into smaller pieces, while also strengthening social bonds through cooperative hunting and food sharing.
However, researchers say the behaviour could simply be play. The sunfish had already been mortally wounded and its nutrient-rich organs consumed before the final impact.
Orcas are known for playful acts, including balancing dead salmon on their heads and playing with seaweed. Scientists now hope further observations will reveal whether this behaviour is specific to certain orcas, sunfish species, or both.
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