Curious about the rudder, orcas have increasingly approached ships over the last five years.
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This year, there have been just under 60 encounters between orcas and boats off the Portuguese coast, a report by the Hydrographic Institute revealed. In recent years, the number of incidents with orcas off the Portuguese coast has sharply risen.
"With regard to interactions and sightings of orcas during 2025, there were 30 sightings and 24 interactions," Commander João Ferraz Fernandes of the National Maritime Authority told Euronews.
The most recent incident took place near Vila do Conde in northern Portugal, resulting in a French sailboat losing its rudder.
The attack occurred two weeks after another sailboat sank off the Costa da Caparica earlier in September, when a group of four orcas had approached the vessel.
In 2022, two different boats sank following separate orca encounters: a sailing yacht with four people on board went down off the coast of Viana do Castelo in November, and another boat off the coast of Sines earlier in the summer.
Attack or prank by a curious species?
While none of the incidents resulted in victims or injuries, there has been a significant increase in orca rammings since 2020, leading many to wonder what has led to the phenomenon.
The scientific community believes that the goal of the wild animals, which can weigh up to 11 tonnes, is to play, not attack.
"We have to see this almost like that game of rope. One pulls one way, the other pulls the other. The rudder is actually a fundamental part of steering the boat. And by playing with the rudder, they are effectively changing the direction of the boat and it seems to trigger interest," marine biologist Rui Rosa explained to Euronews.
"If they really wanted to behave aggressively, it would be of a different intensity, on a different scale," he added.
The problem is that, throughout the years, more animals learned this behaviour as a result of orcas' high cognitive abilities. What initially began with a few juveniles is now done by a much larger number of individuals in the population.
"We're talking about 30 to 40 individuals, so the estimates are that perhaps half of this number is already beginning to show this type of interaction with boats," Rui Rosa explained.
What should you do when an orca approaches?
The Institute for Nature Conservation and Forests (ICNF) has defined a safety protocol on how to react in the event of orcas approaching boats.
"If sea conditions allow, you should immobilise the boat and leave the rudder loose, or put it in reverse and sail for as long as necessary, without sudden changes of direction," the ICNF recommends.
In addition, the protocol advises contacting the authorities and reporting all sightings and interactions.
