Orcas filmed teaming up to ram a two-tonne sunfish so hard it explodes

• Orcas have been filmed pulverising sunfish, one of the world's heaviest fish, in a behaviour scientists are studying.
• Underwater footage from 2024 off the coast of Mexico showed an orca holding a sunfish carcass before another rammed it, causing it to break into hundreds of pieces.
• This never-before-seen behaviour was observed again a year later off the Gulf of California.
• The behaviour, reported in the Frontiers in Ethology journal, could be a feeding strategy to break down large meals for orca calves.
• Scientists also suggest it might simply be a form of play, as orcas are known for playing with their food.

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Orcas filmed pulverizing sunfish in what could be either feeding strategy or fun, scientists say