"Local Extinction: The Disappearance of a Once Collaborative Orca Species"

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Source: Business Insider
"Local Extinction: The Disappearance of a Once Collaborative Orca Species"
Photo: Business Insider
TL;DR

An orca species that had a long-standing relationship with the Thaua people in Australia, where they worked together to hunt whales, is believed to be locally extinct. DNA analysis of a 100-year-old orca skeleton and knowledge from the Thaua people led scientists to this conclusion. The orcas would guide the Thaua hunters to whales, and after the kill, the orcas would eat only the lips and tongue while the hunters took the rest. This unique relationship lasted for generations until the 1930s when the orcas disappeared from the region.

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