SCIENCE* LAB SCHEME : TRY THE SALMON

FOR the killer whales' dinner - dolphins help set the table. In the waters off British Columbia, killer whales trail Pacific white-sided dolphins to hunt Chinook salmon and may even share fish scraps with them, a new study finds.

From a boat, the interaction between the orcas and dolphins looks like organized chaos, the study authors said. But underwater an opportunistic alliance gives orcas access to prey that would otherwise be less accessible.

'' Sometimes you can have an unlikely friend that helps guide you to a buffet or takes you to an underground speakeasy,'' said Sarah Fortune, a marine ecologist at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia and the lead author of the study.

Pacific white-sided dolphins are often seen alongside orcas in Pacific Northwest waters. The orcas appear to tolerate them, showing no evasive or aggressive behavior.

Scientists had thought the dolphins mobbed orcas or stole their prey. But the new study documents  cooperative foraging between the species - showing that dolphins earn their share.

The Publishing continues to Part [ 2 ]. 

The World Students Society thanks Alexa Robles-Gil.