London: In a new research, scientists have estimated that in a ferocious battle between the killer whale and the great white shark, it would be the whale that would emerge the winner.
According to a report in the Express, the research was carried out off California’s Farallon Islands.
Rather than brute strength or ferocity, it is the killer whale’s superior brainpower that wins the day.
Killer whales have found the shark’s weakness – they simply tip it upside down, which sends the creature into a trance and it drowns.
Once dead, the whale can rip open the shark and feed on its nutritious liver.
According to author Jonnie Hughes, “The surprising truth is that sharks can be rendered harmless fairly easily – you just flip them upside-down. To calm itself, the shark releases serotonin and falls into a trance.”
While there is no known instance of a killer whale attacking a human in the wild, the number of shark attacks continue at the rate of more than one a week.
ANI
First Published: Monday, March 01, 2010, 15:51