A seasoned drone pilot, Jack Preston, flown his drone and captured an unexpected footage of orcas hunting for stingrays in the shallows of the coast of Mercury Island in New Zealand. According to Preston”The orcas just came out of nowhere!”
Stingrays are a staple food of the whales in New Zealand. Orcas often search on the shallows in search for a snack, stingrays, which hides under the seaweeds along the coastline. “Here in New Zealand, these whales are very opportunistic, but they’re also very specialized when they’ve found a food source” according to Dr. Ingrid Vesser who is an orca biologist. Orcas also use different hunting techniques which depend on the type of prey.
On the video that Preston captured, he did not manage to capture the act of predation but caught the orcas hunting and this is a memorable experience he will never forget.
