When Erich Hoyt's Orca: The Whale Called Killer was first published in 1981, little was known about Orcinus orca. The largest member of the dolphin family was then considered too dangerous to approach in the wild. That all changed when Erich Hoyt and his colleagues spent seven summers in the 1970s following these intelligent, playful creatures in the waters off northern Vancouver Island. Working alongside other researchers keen to understand the life history of the killer whale, Hoyt's group helped to dispel the negative mythology about orcas while uncovering the intimate details of their social behavior.
This revised fifth edition includes Hoyt's original account, plus exciting new chapters that bring readers up to date on the revolution in public awareness and orca research that has taken place. Hoyt's youthful adventures turned into his life's work. Now a world-renowned expert on whales and dolphins, he shares orca wisdom along with stories gleaned from decades of additional field study in the Russian Far East as well as return trips to Canada's West Coast to visit with the descendants of the killer whales he encountered 45 years ago.
Erich Hoyt is Research Fellow with Whale and Dolphin Conservation and founder/co-director of the Far East Russia Orca Project in Kamchatka. Author of 23 books, he co-chairs the IUCN Marine Mammal Protected Areas Task Force. Hoyt lives with his family in Dorset, England.
Table of Contents
Author's Note 10
Introduction to the Fifth Edition (2019) 11
Prologue 26
Maps of Killer Whale Country 38
Part 1 First Summer 41
Killer Whale Country 41
The Sonic Creature 57
The Predator and People 74
The Whale Census 85
Swimming with Whales 96
Sleeping Whales 117
Part 2 Fall/Winter 133
Captives 133
Part 3 Second Summer 153
A Killer Whale Day 153
Stubbs 183
Part 4 Third Summer 203
The Rubbing Beach 203
Part 5 In later years 221
A Future for Orcas in the Northwest? 221
Epilogue 244
Afterword 275
Appendix 287
Further Reading 300
Index 308
What People are Saying About This
Packed with action, [this] is the only [book] I have ever read that treats this glamorous sea predator in depth.
Niko Tinbergen
One of those rare, genuine books about a wild animal. — Nobel Laureate, 1973
Sir Peter Scott
Erich Hoyt's book is a splendid introduction to one of the most fascinating and charismatic animals in the world. — Founder, World Wildlife Fund
Roger Tory Peterson
Packed with action, [this] is the only [book] I have ever read that treats this glamorous sea predator in depth. — naturalist, artist, author of Peterson Field Guide
