Scientists have identified three primary types of orca societies. They are described by the terms offshore, resident, and transient.
Orcas reach sexual maturity at about the same age as humans.
In the wild, orcas are thought to live to seventy or eighty years of age. There is some evidence that females live longer than males, and the average life expectancy of male orcas is around forty to fifty years.
Orcas are voluntary breathers. For this reason, they sleep with only half of their brain at one time. The other half remains alert to regulate breathing. Resident whales typically remain near the surface, breathing and swimming in a pattern.
When travelling together, resident pods have been observed to breathe in unison. Although it is not known why this occurs, it could be a way of helping the pod keep tabs on one another.
Orcas are at the top of the food chain in the ocean. Transient orcas eat other marine mammals and have even been known to attack whales, including the enormous blue whale.
The orca is the largest member of the dolphin family, and is not really a whale. Due to its size, however, the orca is frequently included in discussions of whales.
Individual orcas can be identified by their dorsal fins and saddle patches. These characteristics are unique for each orca just as human fingerprints are all different. Vocalization characteristics are also unique for each individual.
