Researchers described two filmed Gulf of California sequences, recorded in July 2024 and September 2025, in which one orca held an already dead sunfish while another struck it at high speed and broke the carcass into pieces. [1]

In the first observation, a female released the fish just before an adult male hit it, after which a juvenile ate smaller fragments while the adults fed on the main remains, a coordinated sequence visible on camera. [1]

That sequence permits competing hypotheses, including preparation of tough prey for a younger whale with smaller jaws and play without an obvious practical purpose, but two observations cannot settle motive, cognition, prevalence, cultural transmission or whether the same individuals performed the behavior twice, and each explanation would require different repeated evidence about who participates, when and with what feeding result. [1]

The Guardian's playing-a-game frame supplies irresistible anthropomorphism, yet the report says it is unclear whether the same individuals appeared in both events and notes that tourism cameras can reveal behavior while raising questions about disturbance. [1]

The exact X search timed out, leaving observer reaction unobserved rather than silent, and the useful next record is the primary study, complete videos, individual identification, observation effort, behavior frequency, prey condition, alternative feeding mechanics, juvenile access, repeated encounters and tourism-distance compliance rather than a population-wide tale of entertainment across the Gulf built from two dramatic cameras and an irresistibly human interpretation of animal behavior. [1]

-- KENJI NAKAMURA, Tokyo