A PAIR of killer whales have left beaches littered with the corpses of 17 sharks after a brutal series of attacks.
The murderous whales, named Port and Starboard, have terrorised the coastline for two decades.
Orcas have attacked sharks in the past
Now 17 sharks have been left mutilated with their livers missing
The corpses of 17 sharks were discovered with their livers ripped out on South Africa’s Pearly Beach earlier this week.
Prior to the grisly discovery, a team of scientists had been tracking the two Orcas, and noticed them diving in a strange way.
Marine Dynamics Academy scientist Ralph Watson said: “We observed the two orcas repeatedly diving down in a small area for almost two hours before they departed offshore.”
A week after the odd behaviour, eleven dead sharks were found at the same beach where the most recently killed sharks were discovered.
All of the sharks killed were female seven-gill sharks, and were eerily all missing their livers.
Research has been launched by the team into why Orcas target sharks for a meal.
Lead researcher, Alison Towner, is performing necropsies on dead sharks to find out more about the whales’ odd actions.
She previously told the Smithsonian that the orcas could be targeting the sharks for their “lipid-rich, nutrient-dense livers”.
She said: “This is the largest amount of sharks these orcas have killed in this area in one sitting.
“There could well be more that didn’t wash out.”
Orcas are considered one of the most deadly predators in the ocean – rightfully earning their nickname, “the killer whale”.
They are even able to kill great white sharks and other massive whales, to the horror of any unlucky onlookers who may witness the blood bath.
Last year, a killer whale was filmed ripping out a 30ft whale’s tongue in a terrifying battle.
During the one-on-one tussle, the warring aquatic duo grappled for some time while fearlessly thrashing around in the ocean.
The grey whale is then drowned and fails to resurface as a sea of red is left in its wake.
Social media users were left mortified by the brawl between the majestic marine mammals.
One Reddit user observed: “Orcas are literal gang members. This was a targeted initiation move on an innocent bystander.
“I do not support.”
The poor sharks didn’t stand a chance against the massive predators
The attacks happened over the course of a week
