RSG Recipient Rainer Schimpf witnesses killer whales hunting down dolphin pod

As part of his Ocean Messengers Project investigating dolphins in the Algoa Bay, off Port Elizabeth, South Africa, Rainer witnessed some incredible scenes and was able to prove with spectacular footage a specialized hunting technique of southern hemisphere ORCAS.

For years he was looking for the proof of rumours and stories by fishermen that always between April and May the Orcas would come to Port Elizabeth to hunt for Dolphins.

He has secured a Rufford Small Grant and invested private funds and effort into the research and finally succeeded! The Orcas came already into the Algoa Bay around 12 April. They are quite difficult to find. Planes don't help - only riding around by boat and a well experianced skipper.

Rainer said ‘What I have realized during the last two months was that the common dolphins were more and more difficult to find’. Yesterday (2nd May) after an all day search he succeeded!

A small group of common dolphins come towards the boat, once they were close enough he realized that they were really very exhausted and tired. "Normally we also have big groups of more than 1.000 common dolphins and not 50 dolphins only" .

So he realized these had been separated by something! Shortly after he saw the first of 5 Orcas: 3 adults one 2 year old and one baby! More astonishing was the fact that they were playing with a common dolphin! Teaching the baby how to hunt!

The parents breached over and with the dolphin to show the baby how to kill and survive. He was able to film a lot of the action in HDV (Sony FX1)- which has been converted to these pictures.

Even a scene in which the dolphin swims sideways towards the boat, approaches the boat at 2 meters distance, and then is pushed away by the Orca. In the next second another big male breaches with the dolphin and kills it.

Then the Orcas eat the dolphin. After this he followed the Orcas and managed to snorkel with them, he also took some, images under water, the visibility was about 20 meters with lots of plankton around.

In one scene the mother swims past with the baby, like she wants to show it to Rainer, and opens her mouth threatening him not to come closer. The male, in another scene swims full speed towards Rainer, and dives below and under him..Stunning images

The Orcas spend about 2 weeks already within Algoa Bay. Studies with Scientists are planned and a documentary of the complete event from where they come and where they go to is in planning.
Producers are welcomed to contact Rainer on info@expert-tours.de to find out more.

For more information on his RSG project go to http://www.ruffordsmallgrants.org/rsg/projects/rainer_schimpf_0