Watch: Fishing group witnesses orca attack, leaving otter pup orphaned

Orcas attack mother otter, leaving pup orphaned

The Alaska SeaLife Center is providing 24/7 care to an orphaned otter pup whose mother was attacked by a pod of orcas earlier this month (Credit: ASLC Wildlife Response/D. Wells/Aaron Sorensen)

An orphaned sea otter was rescued by a fishing group after its mother was attacked by a pod of orcas in Alaska.

On Sept. 9, Natalie Hunter and some of her friends were on a recreational fishing trip in Homer, Alaska, when they spotted two wild orcas in the water.

The group shut off their boat engine to observe the animals from a distance.

The Alaska SeaLife Center Wildlife Response Program admitted a newborn otter pup from Homer, Alaska on Sept. 9, 2023. The ASLC team is caring for the pup 24/7 and offering feeds every two hours. (Kaiti Grant | Alaska SeaLife Center)

Nearby was a floating otter carrying her pup on her stomach when a sudden commotion beneath the mother otter ensued, according to an Alaska SeaLife Center (ASLC) news release.

Hunter, who just happens to be a laboratory technician and wildlife response team member at ASLC, watched the nerve-wracking attack unfold as one of the orcas performed "an impressive tail slap," launching both baby and mother otter out of the water.

Once separated, the orcas focused their attention on the mother and she never resurfaced.

Cries from the baby otter could be heard by Hunter and her friends. Once they saw the orcas leave the area, they promptly called the ASLC Wildlife Response Hotline for guidance.

"It was weird to be on the other side of the wildlife response hotline. It wasn’t someone calling me to report an animal in need. It was the other way around," said Hunter. "My brain was in wildlife response mode during the entire incident, thinking we, unfortunately, may have an otter pup rescue on our hands. It wasn’t until the entire event ended, the wild orcas had left the area, and the pup started crying out for its mother that I knew we had to think about the next move."

Hunter was not the only person on board the boat with wildlife response experience. Her friends who were on the fishing trip with her consisted of two former U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service volunteers, an ASLC intern and a current veterinary technician from the Georgia Aquarium.

Once they were given the go-ahead, the group brought the pup on board their boat.

A newborn otter pup from Homer, Alaska sleeps after a feeding session on Sept. 10, 2023. The newborn otter pup patient is receiving round-the-clock care from the Alaska SeaLife Center team. (Kaiti Grant | Alaska SeaLife Center)

"Her cries were gurgly, and when we got her out of the water, she was soaked," Hunter recollects. "Her coat wasn’t repelling water and keeping her buoyant like it should have been."

After bringing the pup to ASLC, it was quickly found that she was no more than a day old, having evidence of a fresh umbilical cord.

Natalie Hunter, ASLC Laboratory Technician and Wildlife Response team member, bottle feeds a newborn otter pup patient on Sept. 13, 2023. Hunter witnessed the orca attack in Homer, Alaska that orphaned the pup. (Kaiti Grant | Alaska SeaLife Center)

Apart from being tired and hungry, the pup was in good health, ASLC said.

"Very rarely do we know how a wildlife response patient got to the location and the condition it was found in. For most reported cases of an abandoned seal or otter pup, we have the reporter watch for a length of time to see if the mother returns. In this rare case, we know exactly what happened to this newborn pup," said Jane Belovarac, ASLC Wildlife Response Curator.

This is the second orphaned otter pup that was admitted to the ASLC in less than a week. Both patients are under 24/7 care from the team.

This story was reported from Los Angeles.