Famous orca found with multiple gunshot wounds to its fin

By Lauren Wilkin

An orca known for ramming boats has been spotted with multiple gunshot wounds to its dorsal fin in the Strait of Gibraltar.

Toñi - the oldest Iberian orca whale - is well known to campaign groups like Save The Iberian Orca and the WeWhale Association, who have been observing her behavior for a while.

WeWhale and Iberian Orca Guardians have documented multiple new wounds during their current field operations.

Based on the appearance, number and distribution of the wounds, they believe that Toñi has been shot with a shotgun and that the visible injuries are pellet wounds.

The team knows Toñi well due to the ongoing Save The Iberian Orca campaign.

WeWhale says that the Iberian orca population is critically endangered and very few are left.

Toñi is the oldest known individual within this population and has been followed for many years.

"Losing or seriously harming even one animal has significance far beyond the individual when dealing with a population this small," WeWhale's statement reads.

The team also observed and photographed her only a few weeks ago, when these injuries were not present.

"The sudden appearance of these injuries within a matter of weeks, together with their number, size and distribution, clearly leads to believe that they are the result of a shotgun discharge," the WeWhale team say.

They say this is an extremely serious development involving one of the few remaining members of the critically endangered Iberian orca population.

"We know Toñi. We were with her a few weeks ago and these wounds were not there," says Janek Andre, founder and president of WeWhale and the Iberian Orca Guardians Foundation.

"Now we are seeing multiple impact wounds across her dorsal fin and back which, in our assessment, are consistent with her having been shot with a shotgun.

"For us, these aren't anonymous animals. We know them individually, we know their families. Seeing Toñi like this is devastating.

"If someone has deliberately fired a shotgun at her, this is not only an act of extreme cruelty against an individual animal. It is an attack on one of the last remaining members of a critically endangered population."

The organizations will continue documenting Toñi closely, including her physical condition and behavior.

Orca attacks on boats have been widely reported recently in Portugal, including many interactions where orcas are ramming the rudders of boats.

"There has been enormous public discussion about Iberian orcas and their interactions with vessels.

"Whatever someone's opinion about those interactions may be, shooting at these animals can never be an acceptable response. These orcas need protection, not retaliation," adds Janek.

WeWhale and Iberian Orca Guardians will continue documenting Toñi and the other members of the population and will provide further information as it becomes available.