Orcas use kelp tools to groom and bond off B.C.’s coast, study suggests

B.C. orcas spotted using kelp tools to groom and bond with one another

Researchers observed the "really unique" behaviour in southern residents across all social groups, both sexes, and all age classes.

Study finds southern resident killer whales use tools for social and hygienic purposes

Southern resident killer whales, such as those that frequent the waters off Vancouver Island, have recently been observed making and using tools to socialize and clean themselves.

Orcas groom each other with kelp tools, scientists believe

In pricey spas, kelp facials and body wraps can set the esthetically inclined human back hundreds of dollars. But in the Salish Sea off British Columbia, southern resident killer whales are also using the sea plants for what scientists suspect are grooming purposes.

In a stunning first, scientists discover orcas using tools to groom each other

Orcas were spotted using kelp as a grooming tool on each other, the first known use of tools among cetaceans for something other than hunting prey.

Killer whales display rare behaviour using tools to groom each other

In the cool, kelp-rich waters of the Salish Sea — a stretch of ocean between British Columbia and Washington State — researchers surveying the critically endangered southern resident killer whales have witnessed something extraordinary. The whales were fashioning short lengths of bull kelp stipe (a stem-like structure) from full stalks, placing the kelp between themselves and a companion, then rolling it between their bodies. It’s a behaviour ne…

Orcas filmed for first time using kelp to give each other massages

For the first time, researchers say they have captured footage of killer whales making tools out of seaweed to seemingly groom each other.