Revista de Biología Tropical, ISSN: 2215-2075, Vol. 71(S4): e57288, diciembre 2023 (Publicado Nov. 01, 2023)

Killer whales, Orcinus orca (Artiodactyla: Delphinidae) in Guatemala:

sighting records, photographic match, and interaction with Bryde’s whales,

Balaenoptera edeni (Artiodactyla: Balaenoptera)

Jenniffer Ortiz-Wolford1, 4*; https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6334-9718

Julio C. Romero2, 4; https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3978-0393

Andrea A. Cabrera3, 4; https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5385-1114

1. Departamento de Investigación Marino-Costera, Semillas del Océano, ONG. Guatemala, Guatemala; jennysow86@

gmail.com (Correspondence*)

2. BQB Biosfera, Investigaciones biológicas. Guatemala, Guatemala; julioromeroguevara@gmail.com.

3. Globe Institute, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5-7, Copenhagen, Denmark; andrea_ca_gt@yahoo.com

4. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas y Farmacia, Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala, Guatemala, Guatemala.

(Affiliation during research surveys in 2011).

Received 13-VII-2022. Corrected 04-XII-2022. Accepted 25-IV-2023.

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Killer whales (Orcinus orca) have a global distribution, but many low-latitude populations such as

the Eastern Tropical Pacific are not well studied.

Objective: Provide a review of killer whale sightings in the Exclusive Economic Zone of the Pacific of Guatemala,

for which there has previously been little information.

Methods: We reviewed national and regional publications, as well as anecdotal records of killer whale sightings

in Guatemala.

Results: We document five sightings spanning three decades (1990-2020). Four sightings were recorded between

2010 and 2020 and occurred within the San José Canyon or over the continental shelf. Group size varied from

1-15 individuals ( : 6 ± 4.3). We report a photographic match of three killer whale individuals from a single pod

previously sighted in Cabo Corrientes, México, 11 years and 1 778 km apart. We also describe an interaction

between a killer whale pod and two adult Bryde’s whales (Balaenoptera edeni), in which the Bryde’s whales fol-

lowed a female killer whale and its calf.

Conclusions: This study represents a contribution to the knowledge of killer whales in the region. It highlights

the importance of data collection from both scientific and anecdotal records and supports the need of establish-

ing national and regional monitoring and conservation programs for cetaceans.

Key words: Central America; cetaceans; Eastern Tropical Pacific; orca; photo-ID; resighting.

RESUMEN

Orcas, Orcinus orca (Artiodactyla: Delphinidae) en Guatemala: registros de avistamientos, fotoidentifi-

cación e interacciones con ballenas de Bryde, Balaenoptera edeni (Artiodactyla: Balaenoptera)

Introducción: Las orcas (Orcinus orca) tienen una distribución global, pero muchas poblaciones de bajas latitu-

des, como el Pacífico Tropical Oriental, no han sido bien estudiadas.

Objetivo: Proporcionar una revisión de los avistamientos de orcas en la Zona Económica Exclusiva del Pacífico

de Guatemala.

https://doi.org/10.15517/rev.biol.trop..v71iS4.57288

SUPPLEMENT • SMALL CETACEANS

2Revista de Biología Tropical, ISSN: 2215-2075 Vol. 71(S4): e57288, diciembre 2023 (Publicado Nov. 01, 2023)

INTRODUCTION

The killer whale, Orcinus orca (Linnaeus,

1758) is a widely distributed cetacean inhabit-

ing all oceans (Forney & Wade, 2006). It is most

frequently found in coastal temperate and polar

waters of high productivity (Forney & Wade,

2006), where some populations have been well

documented (e.g., Best et al., 2010; Dahlheim

et al., 2008; Guinet et al., 2015; Jourdain et al.,

2019; Pitman & Ensor, 2003). Despite recent

advances in killer whale research in the Eastern

Tropical Pacific (ETP; e.g., Denkinger et al.,

2020; Guerrero-Ruiz et al., 2005; Pacheco et al.,

2019; Vargas-Bravo et al., 2021), the distribu-

tion, ecology and behavior of killer whales in

the region remains poorly understood. Records

of killer whales are sporadic in Guatemala

(Cabrera et al., 2012, Cabrera et al., 2014; Hill et

al., 1991), and reports of sightings have mainly

been anecdotal. To better understand killer

whales in the region and establish a baseline of

research, we review five killer whale sightings

in Guatemala from 1990 till 2020, including

three previously unreported. We also document

photographic matches of a killer whale pod

sighted 11 years and 1 778 km apart. Finally,

we describe a pair of Bryde’s whales, Balaenop-

tera edeni (Anderson, 1878) following a killer

whale pod.

Killer whale sighting records from Guate-

mala were obtained by reviewing national and

regional publications and anecdotal records

from third parties. We also provide additional

details of a sighting previously reported by the

authors (Cabrera et al., 2012). The original

observers from anecdotal records were contact-

ed to obtain detailed information of the sight-

ing, including date, coordinates or approximate

location, estimated number of individuals, as

well as photographic and/or video evidence.

Using photographs and videos, we identi-

fied age class and sex according to the follow-

ing categories: adult male, individual showing

relatively large erect dorsal fin; adult female,

only differentiated if the individual was accom-

panied by a calf; calves, small size and marked

association with another adult individual; juve-

niles, they can be females without associated

calf, or young males whose dorsal fin is not

fully developed (Vargas-Bravo et al., 2021).

To gain insights into possible movements

of killer whale pods and individuals, good

quality photographs were compared with the

following regional photo-identification catalogs

of killer whales: Black et al., (1997); Ellis et al.,

(2008); Olson & Gerrodette (2008). Experts in

the area were also contacted to compare the

photographs with unpublished catalogs from

the Galapagos Islands (J. Denkinger & Alarcon,

n.d.) and from the Mexican central Pacific (C.

Ortega-Ortiz, personal communication, Octo-

ber 27, 2020).

Killer whale sighting records: We docu-

mented five killer whale sightings off Guatema-

la between the years 1990 and 2020 (Fig. 1A).

Two sightings were recorded during separate

Métodos: Revisamos publicaciones nacionales y regionales, así como registros anecdóticos de avistamientos de

orcas en Guatemala.

Resultados: Documentamos cinco avistamientos que abarcan tres décadas (1990-2020). Registramos cuatro avis-

tamientos entre 2010 y 2020 que ocurrieron en el Cañón de San José o sobre la plataforma continental. El tamaño

de grupo varió de 1 a 15 individuos ( : 6 ± 4.3). Reportamos una coincidencia fotográfica de tres individuos de

orcas de un solo grupo previamente avistado en Cabo Corrientes, México, con 11 años y ~1 778 km de diferencia.

También describimos una interacción entre un grupo de orcas y dos ballenas de Bryde adultas (Balaenoptera

edeni), en la que las ballenas de Bryde siguieron a una orca hembra y su cría.

Conclusión: Este estudio contribuye al conocimiento de las orcas en la región. Destaca la importancia de recopi-

lar datos tanto de registros científicos como anecdóticos y apoya la necesidad de establecer programas nacionales

y regionales de monitoreo y conservación de cetáceos.

Palabras clave: Centro América; cetáceos; foto-ID; orca; Pacífico Tropical Oriental; recaptura.

Revista de Biología Tropical, ISSN: 2215-2075, Vol. 71(S4): e57288, diciembre 2023 (Publicado Nov. 01, 2023)

research surveys, two during whale watching

activities, and one during a sport fishing trip.

Four of the sightings were recorded during

2010 and 2020 and occurred within the San

José Canyon or over the continental shelf off

the coast of Escuintla and Santa Rosa. Four

sightings occurred during the Guatemalan dry

season equivalent to the Northern Hemisphere

winter season (November to February). Below

we describe the five killer whale sightings:

#1 On September 1, 1990, a pod of five indivi-

duals was recorded 278 km from the coast-

line between Escuintla and Santa Rosa

(10°56’ N 92°28’ W) during a cetacean

research survey of the ETP conducted by

the United States National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (Hill et al.,

1991).

#2 On February 14, 2010, a solitary adult

male was observed traveling ~10 km

from Monterrico coastline, Santa Rosa

(13°47’12.1056”N 90°33’9.7812”W). The

sighting occurred during a whale watching

trip by the company Extremo a Extremo (P.

Cabrera, personal communication, Octo-

ber 21, 2020).

#3 On December 17, 2011, a pod of four

killer whales consisting of one male, two

females, and one calf was recorded by

the authors during a research survey at

13°33’22.8’’N 91°29’15.9’’W, ~48 km off

Escuintla (Cabrera et al., 2012).

#4 On November 24, 2017, a pod of five to ten

killer whales was recorded during a sport

fishing trip off Guatemala. The exact loca-

tion was not recorded but was approxima-

tely 13°22’N 90°51’W. The pod consisting

of at least one male and several females

and/or juvenile males was traveling and

did not interact with the boat (C. Monte-

ros, personal communication, October 16,

2020).

#5 On January 25, 2020, a pod consisting of

a minimum of ten (range 10-15) killer

whales, was reported by the whale wat-

ching company Serviturismo Las Lisas.

The pod consisted of at least two males

and several females/young males and cal-

ves. The sighting occurred in the San José

Canyon, ~74 km off the coast of Santa Rosa

(13°15’01.4’’N 90°40’0.1’’W). Some mem-

bers of the pod, mainly the calves, swam

under and around the boat (O. Marro-

quín, personal communication, January

26, 2020).

Photographic match of a killer whale

pod: Through photo-identification, three adult

individuals from the same pod photographed

in 2011, were matched with a sighting photo-

graphed 11 years earlier, on August 15, 2000,

as part of group No. 25.00 off Cabo Corri-

entes, Mexico (20°16’13.2’’N, 105°45’24.6’’W)

consisted of seven individuals (Olson & Ger-

rodette, 2008). The shortest distance between

sightings is ~1 778 km. The female in Fig. 1B

matches E060 (Olson & Gerrodette, 2008) and

was identified by two notches on the back of

her dorsal fin. The female with a calf (E061,

Fig. 1C) was identified by the unique pattern on

its saddle patch, although a modification had

occurred on the tip of its dorsal fin (red arrow).

The male (E059, Fig. 1D) was identified by the

beveled tip.

Interaction between killer whales and

Bryde’s whales: We observed a peculiar inter-

action between a killer whale pod and two

adult Bryde’s whales (Fig. 1E). The sighting

occurred on December 17, 2011, and began

at 11:20h when we recorded a “splash” at ~1

km from our vessel (65-foot frigate). Once in

the area, at 11:33h, a female killer whale and

a calf approached the vessel for a few minutes,

swimming slowly, sideways, and near the water

surface. A few minutes later, two Bryde’s whales

were observed swimming slowly at ~100 m

from the killer whales. At 11:44h, when the

killer whales started moving away from the

boat, the Bryde’s whales swam behind the killer

whales and accelerated, a behavior that we con-

sider as chasing or pursuit. During the obser-

vation, the Bryde’s whales remained within

~100 m of the killer whales while traveling at

high speed. One of the Bryde’s whales breached

4Revista de Biología Tropical, ISSN: 2215-2075 Vol. 71(S4): e57288, diciembre 2023 (Publicado Nov. 01, 2023)

Fig. 1. A. Killer whale sightings off Guatemala. Location of Escuintla (ESC) and Santa Rosa (S.R.). Insert shows the location

of the photographic match between our sighting #3 and group 25.00 reported by Olson & Gerrodette (2008); B-D. Killer

whales from sighting #3 that match individuals E-060 (B), E-061 (C) and E-059 (D) from group 25.00. Arrows point to the

original (white) and new (red) distinctive marks. Inserted numbers indicate the catalog number based on Cabrera et al.

(2012); E. Schematic representation of killer whale-Bryde’s whale encounter in 2011; including two Bryde’s whale following

killer whales, Bryde’s whale breaching, two killer whales accompanying calf and retreat of Bryde’s whales; F. Female killer

whales positioning the calf between them; G. Bryde’s whale breaching while following the killer whales.

Revista de Biología Tropical, ISSN: 2215-2075, Vol. 71(S4): e57288, diciembre 2023 (Publicado Nov. 01, 2023)

twice, at 11:49h and 11:51h (Fig. 1G). The event

lasted about 11 minutes, ending when a second

female killer whale approached and positioned

herself on the opposite side of the first female,

positioning the calf in the middle (Fig. 1F). At

11:55h, the two Bryde’s whales turned away

from the killer whales. At 11:58h, we spotted

the fin of a male killer whale at ~500 m away.

The male slapped his tail at least three times,

and then the two females and the calf dove and

swam to join the male. The four killer whales

continued to swim very close until they were

out of sight. At no time did we observe a direct

response or attack by the killer whales towards

the Bryde’s whales.

Killer whales are rare visitors in Guate-

mala: Five opportunistic sightings collected

over a span of 30 years suggests that killer

whales are rare in Guatemala, and there are

no indications of resident pods. Although no

predatory behavior was observed in any of

the reports, it is possible that the killer whales

that approach the Guatemalan coast between

November and February do so in search of

humpback whale calves (Pacheco et al., 2019),

or other cetaceans as it has been observed in the

ETP (e.g., Flórez-González et al., 2007; Pitman

et al., 2007; Testino et al., 2019). Killer whales

from low latitude regions such as the ETP and

Hawaii have been considered generalists feed-

ing not only on marine mammals, but also on

fish and turtles (e.g., Baird et al., 2006; Vargas-

Bravo et al., 2021).

A photographic match represents the

longest time interval and distance recorded

for a killer whale pod in the ETP: The photo-

graphic match between three killer whale indi-

viduals sighted in Guatemala and previously

in Mexico provides insights into killer whale’s

movements and behavior in the ETP. Although

the minimum distance (1 778 km) between the

two sights is well below previous reports (5 535

km (Guerrero-Ruiz et al., 2005) and 3 839 km

(Pacheco et al., 2019)) for a single individual

in the region, it represents the longest distance

recorded for multiple individuals from the

same pod in the ETP. The time interval of 11

years between the sightings provides infor-

mation on family association or cohesion. At

least three of the seven killer whales originally

recorded by Olson & Gerrodette (2008) as part

of their group number 25.00 have potentially

remained together for at least 11 years. In addi-

tion, the new photographs of the individuals

can be used to update the original photo-iden-

tification catalog from Olson & Gerrodette

(2008) particularly for those individuals with

fin modifications, such as female E061.

Interaction between Bryde’s whales and

killer whales. To our knowledge, the described

interaction between these two species has

not been reported before. Previous report of

Bryde’s whales and killer whales interactions

have involved either an attack of the killer

whales (Alava et al., 2013; Silber et al.,1990),

fleeing of the Bryde’s whales (Ford & Reeves,

2008) or indifference in which both species

moved away from one another (Villegas-Zurita

et al., 2016). Although we did not observe any

direct attack from the killer whales towards

the Bryde’s whales or any other species, the

observed Bryde’s whales behavior could be

associated with an antipredatory response such

as the “fight strategy” (Ford & Reeves, 2008),

or an altruistic behavior such as “mobbing”

(Pitman et al., 2017). However, these strategies

have not been reported for Bryde’s whales and

other rorquals of the genus Balaenoptera, but

only for whales with robust body shapes such

as humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae)

(Ford & Reevs, 2008; Pitman et al., 2017).

Additionally, it is known that breaching repre-

sents an activity of high energy cost (Segre et

al., 2020). The Bryde’s whale breaches observed

during the interaction could be associated with

a demonstration of strength against potential

predators or as a means of communication

(Whitehead, 1985). Other behaviors such as

social interaction including playing or curios-

ity could also be considered as an explana-

tion. Given the novelty of the behavior, more

research needs to be done in the future before

drawing any conclusion.

6Revista de Biología Tropical, ISSN: 2215-2075 Vol. 71(S4): e57288, diciembre 2023 (Publicado Nov. 01, 2023)

Implications for research and conserva-

tion: Although the number of killer whale

sighting records in Guatemala is limited, this

information contributes to current efforts to

increase knowledge on distribution, move-

ments, and intra- and interspecific behaviors of

killer whales in the ETP. The potential increase

in killer whale sighting frequency over the

past decade may be attributed to an increased

sighting effort, which includes citizen sci-

ence, whale watching, and research programs.

This highlights the importance of establishing

long-term monitoring programs of cetaceans

in the country. The cross-border movements

observed in some killer whales emphasize the

need for international conservation efforts, as

killer whales are not bound by political borders.

Ethical statement: the authors declare that

they all agree with this publication and made

significant contributions; that there is no con-

flict of interest of any kind; and that we fol-

lowed all pertinent ethical and legal procedures

and requirements. All financial sources are fully

and clearly stated in the acknowledgments sec-

tion. A signed document has been filed in the

journal archives.

Author contribution: Conceptualization,

AAC, JOW; Investigation, JOW, AAC, JCR;

Formal analysis, JOW; Writing – Original Draft

JOW, AAC; Writing – Review & Editing, All

authors; Supervision, AAC; Funding Acquisi-

tion, AAC, JOW.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The project “Cetáceos de la Costa Pacífica

de Guatemala, Parte II: Pacífico Central’’ in

2011 was funded by the “Fondo Nacional para

la Conservación de la Naturaleza” (F16/2010)

and the “Comando Naval del Pacífico de Guate-

mala”. AAC was funded by the Rubicon-NWO

grant (019.183EN.005), and by the University

of Copenhagen. We thank those who contrib-

uted with the opportunistic killer whale sight-

ing records in Guatemala: Pablo Cabrera from

Extremo a Extremo, Oscar Marroquín from

Serviturismo Las Lisas, and Carlos Montero.

We also thank the colleagues who advised us

and gave us access to their photo-identification

catalogs: Miguel Iñíguez, Judith Denkinger, and

Christian Ortega Ortiz.

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