Orca pushes, spins boaters in ‘unusual encounter’ caught on camera

PUGET SOUND, Wash. — Boaters sitting in their idle vessel experienced what the Orca Network is calling an unusual encounter Tuesday.

Dirk Morgan shared the video with the Orca Network, which shows T65A2 Ooxjaa, a 17-year old male Bigg’s orca, approach their boat in Saratoga Passage in northern Puget Sound.

The video by Morgan and Deb Syna shows the orca staying against the side of the boat, then circle and return to the same position. The whale then actually pushes the boat for a time and spins it around, to the surprise of its occupants, before disappearing.

“Bigg’s transient orcas will sometimes approach vessels out of curiosity, or more often when hunting prey who seek refuge under/near vessels, but this is unusual behavior and looks to be something else,” the Orca Network posted on its Facebook page.

Syna took notes of the encounter, which she said happened between Camano Island’s southern tip and Elger Bay on the east side of Saratoga Passage.

“After the encounter he followed us for about 20 minutes in deeper water. I stayed in the shallows, not wanting a second close encounter. He played with the boat for about 10 minutes, going under and rocking, then pushing and then spinning us before he swam off,” Syna’s notes said.

The Orca Network noted that the boat was idle when the orca approached, and that Morgan and Syna “conducted themselves with immense composure and grace, and did everything correct in not starting up their engine when T65A2 was near their boat.”

Watch the video below.

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