Orca Attack off Moroccan Coast Damages Fishing Boat, Raises Safety Concerns

The head of a fishermen’s organization in the port of M’diq said he had suffered an orca attack during a fishing trip with colleagues. The cetaceans violently attacked their boat, with one side being seriously damaged. They were saved thanks to the rapid intervention of the Royal Navy.

The orcas would be carrying out these attacks to express their anger following the death of a young cetacean who, while searching for food, choked in a tuna trap, he explains. But according to experts and researchers, the feeling of fear and stress caused by human activities would motivate the orcas to attack fishing boats.

Faced with these recurrent orca attacks, the Secretary of State for Maritime Fisheries, Zakia Driouich, tried to reassure the fishermen, stating that these attacks are isolated and are neither hostile nor violent. The official added that measures have been taken to monitor these attacks and protect the fishermen.

Driouich also indicated that the Institute of Maritime Fisheries has stepped up research to try to understand the behavior of orcas towards fishing boats.