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wanderyote t1_ja8rbjf wrote

if a mountain lion can swim that far, it makes it likely that at some point one got eaten by an orca.

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TheFlyingBoxcar t1_ja8t45n wrote

Yeahfirst thing I thought was this is how you get eaten by orcas

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gobbo t1_ja8ytxa wrote

Orcas are fussy eaters: the Salish sea resident J pod, for instance, only really eat salmon, and the genetically nearly identical, but culturally quite different transient pods, are particular about eating seals and sea lions and whales and things with lots of fat on them.

Chances are the transients would ping this feline and realize it's nothing but sinew and bones with almost no fat and not worth eating.

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dr3wzy10 t1_ja9ei6m wrote

they eat wolves in the PNW, so I feel like it wouldn't be much of a stretch for them to also eat a mountain lion given the opportunity

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gobbo t1_ja9rvxz wrote

OK, that's really interesting! How often, and which orcas?

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Frosti11icus t1_jabg5lv wrote

There are Sea Wolves in the Upper Pacific Northwest. They are packs of wolves who swim between islands to hunt. IDK if it's true Orca's are hunting them...but they aren't very well studied anyway so I doubt there's anyone looking for evidence.

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dr3wzy10 t1_jaa4iqo wrote

Orcas have been observed preying on terrestrial mammals, such as deer swimming between islands off the northwest coast of North America

took that from the wikipedia page. I think the same area that these orca have been observed eating deer that swim in the water has a pack of wolves that also swims in those waters. So, maybe what i said is a stretch from a stretch but still within the realm of possibility i believe.

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Marine__0311 t1_ja9qazx wrote

It's feasible, but highly, unlikely.

Orcas have been observed preying on several aquatic mammal species, but never on a swimming terrestrial mammal. But, some carcasses of moose, and one deer, have been found with bite marks consistent with an orca attack.

Orca pods have different ecotypes, and often specialize on specific prey species. They only occasionally go after prey outside of their preferences.

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FrigFrostyFeet t1_jaar08g wrote

Where did you get “and one deer”? Lolol

“Orcas have been observed preying on terrestrial mammals, such as deer swimming between islands off the northwest coast of North America.” Straight from wiki

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its_not_you_its_ye t1_jaa31vj wrote

If that were the case, we’d probably have more examples of humans being eaten by orcas in the wild.

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