ORCA proof Yachts now Required

It's possible but it's probably been a long time for the sport fish and commercial fleets running near 24/7 sounders.

I'm guessing it can have some manner of effect or tracking. When the whales really started to bloom population wise and start to interact with us, we found out pretty quick they responded to the hydraulics aboard. We could circle our bouys with them only on the horizon, but switch on the deck hydraulics and they would appear almost instantly. Know of at least one fellow who went to great lengths to mechanically isolate and quiet down his system. Not sure if it actually helped or not.

 

On a similar vein, Sharks are attracted by the small currents given off the propellers of outboard engines it seems. Your observation may be valid.

 

Skip forward 7 minutes to when Jared Towers begins speaking.
Ep #12| Gladis Orcas and Navigating Narratives with Jared Towers https://open.spotify.com/episode/4h3jswWE5a436gq8wvQxW4?si=e6dcee9f2b9a4a27

 

Or, if you want a quicker, written detail they linked to this interview, they link to this paper
"Despite the damage to vessels, we believe characterising the interactions as ‘attacks’ is misleading. While some parts of the vessels infrequently have teeth marks on them, the predominant damage to rudders and keels are due to strikes or rams with the head or body. The whales are not ripping the rudders apart, as they might if this were hunting behaviour. While the behaviour may be frightening (and costly) from a human perspective, from the whales’ perspective, it seems to be somehow gratifying."
https://uk.whales.org/wp-content/up...-letter-re-Iberian-orcas-FINAL-August2023.pdf

 

Some sort of repellent that could be used with existing craft, might be a way of orca proofing?

Perhaps that could be done by activating electric current paddles on a boat that only causes discomfort to the orcas inside of a certain range? Of course, it would have to be done in a way so that there would not be any damage whatsoever, if that be possible...

 

Why Do Orca Killer Whales Target And Sink Yachts? https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/orca-killer-whales-yachts-1235011945/

More about the gladis (orca) Interesting read.

 

Some interesting points , for sure.
I pulled these out

He experimented with keeping going (the boat) versus stopping — and found that continuing led to fewer and less destructive attacks. A stationary boat, he found, makes for a better target.

and

If the orcas do intend to destroy boats and harm people on them, they could do that easily by smashing holes in the hull — but they never do. They are obsessed only with the rudder. And the idea that the behavior developed in reaction to an injury from a fishing line, or even because of overfishing, is dubious, because the orcas very rarely, to our knowledge, attack fishing boats — for unclear reasons.

 

I would suggest we are in never before encountered times for marine life, with human activities having a major impact on their environment due to overfishing, seismic surveying, powerful electromagnetics, noisy injury causing ships and boats etc.

Shark fatalities are through the roof in the cooler latitudes around Australia, and I would imagine it would be similar elsewhere, so no surprise that the most intelligent predatory carnivores in the water are taking the fight back to humans, and have no easy way of discerning a weekend sailor from a shipping magnate, I doubt they care.

On a more pleasant note, here is a story of many thousands of years of mutually beneficial cooperation between killer whales and humans, which continued when invading Europeans arrived with their wholesale slaughter and all but made whales extinct. Only ferry loads of tourists interact with them now.
Killer whales of Eden, New South Wales - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killer_whales_of_Eden,_New_South_Wales

 

" Huveneers tells Cosmos the spate of shark bites occurring in South Australia in 2023 is not as unusual as people think. Similar series of incidents in a short time frame have previously occurred in other states (such as 2011-2012 in Margaret River in Western Australia, 2013-14 in northern New South Wales and 2018 in the Whitsundays in Queensland) and in other countries (e.g. Reunion Island, New Caledonia).

The emotional response to such incidents is understandable as these are tragic and traumatic events, he says, but it’s important that any decisions made in the aftermath are based on science and evidence.

While unprovoked attacks have been increasing worldwide over the last four decades, shark bites are decreasing in some regions and remain stable in others, reflecting the high variability in the risk of being bitten. "
Australia a hotspot as shark attack deaths rise https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/marine-life/australia-a-hotspot-as-shark-attack-deaths-rise/

 

There is certainly a lot of emotion involved, which gives politicians carte blanche to slaughter something.

Do you remember a lady taken off 9th Island in Bass Strait some time ago by a pointer? Other idiots and I dived for giant crayfish right through that atea, out to Flinders, and around the corner to Orford. Never saw more than a gummy or a Port Jackson shark. We never considered that white pointers were in the waters we dived; despite various Jaws movies.

 

once they appear and start fiddling with your vessel there’s no way you could sail/motor away from them. For what you’re asking to be possible you’d first have to be able to exceed 35mph.

 

We used all manner of non lethal. Took them years to adapt around the seal crackers. My guess is if folks started with that it could go a long way to negative reinforcement. Granted I'm doubtful they are easy to find in Europe, these days it's a paperwork pain but they are attainable.

 

I’m sure there’s an acoustic device you could put in the water that would send them scurrying away. Just need the frequency and volume. The nave kills whales all the time. You just need to irritate them. From what I understand they might possibly be doing this just for fun. Otters, dolphins, orcas, and so on all play quite a bit. I think the best possible outcome for all parties is to make this NOT FUN.