Massive sea creature seen using ‘unusual hunting technique’ off Canada, photos show

While aboard a cruise ship off the eastern coast of Canada, conservationists and guests were treated to an “incredible sight.”

They spotted a humpback whale engaging in an “ unusual hunting technique ,” according to a Sept. 5 news release from ORCA, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting cetaceans.

The massive creature was seen “chasing fish in shallow water towards the rocky shoreline before holding its mouth open, forcing the fish to jump straight in.”

Photos accompanying the release captured the whale’s unique behavior — which is known as trap feeding.

It’s not the first time the technique has been employed either.

Locals had previously seen whales in the area engaging in trap feeding, according to the release.

This obscure behavior was first recorded in two humpback whales off Canada in 2011, according to a 2018 study published in the journal Marine Mammal Science.

But by 2015, the number of whales seen trap feeding had increased to 16.

The authors concluded that the hunting technique “may be a culturally transmitted foraging innovation that provides an energetically efficient method of feeding.”

The technique may not be that novel, though.

Interestingly, it appears to have “ striking parallels ” with the hunting method of a sea creature described in ancient European sources, according to a 2023 study published in the journal of Marine Mammal Science.

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