Cruising Association says orca are now ‘one of the risks’ of sailing
After five seasons of orca interactions through the Bay of Biscay – with several resulting in yachts being sunk – the Cruising Association’s John Burbeck (orca project team leader) now says the association has “come to the point where we accept that orca interacting with yachts is one of the risks of sailing — like stormy water or man overboard.
“We’ve had five seasons of this, and it hasn’t gone away.”
When MIN first covered the orca interactions, the CA (among others) was busily creating data collection systems to unpick the behaviour as orca started to bite rudders playfully or aggressively (opinions on behaviour vary).
But now Burbeck says, no one is any closer to unpicking the mysterious behaviour and it’s time to accept that the orca are staying put.
On the bright side, he says the number of interactions was down last year. “They were two-thirds of the year before, but it was still over a hundred interactions with two boats that sank.
“The nature of the damage is the same; it’s the rudders. If you’re going to sail in these waters, it’s a real risk.”
Now, the CA has been busily developing a strategy for sailing alongside this particular orca pod, using data collated from various sources.
Online research to work out when to go, and where the pod is
First off is the CA’s own website, which has a chart showing orca interactions by place, month and year (the latest version – from 18 March 2025 – is above). That shows the best times to sail when there have been the fewest interactions. “Ideally, plan to travel when it’s green,” Burbeck says.
Then there’s the GT Orca Atlantic traffic light system on its website — valid in 24-hour bursts (pictured left). It’s also created an app, GTOA Orca.
When the Orcinus app is layered on top, which (as a live data system) shows interactions, current sightings and non-contact interactions (where the orca have got very close to boat but didn’t do any damage) — that’s a pretty good system to start avoidance tactics.
Tactics when encountering orca off the Straits of Gibraltar
Burbeck says, like with any emergency situation, skippers and crews must have a plan in place of what to do if orca are encountered.
He says there are three main tactics: using noise, reversing and motoring away at speed.
“One skipper used a foghorn very loudly, and that made them go away,” Burbeck notes. Reports of these incidents and tactic successes are available on the CA website.
“Legally, there are only two things you can do, as orca are a protected species. One is to pour sand around the rudder, as that disrupts their sonar, and/or make a loud noise. Those are the only two deterrents.
“If it does happen, we don’t know whether it’s better to stop the boat or motor away quickly towards shallow water. There are two bodies of thought from different scientists. If you stop, it calms the orca down, and they get less adrenaline. However, particularly if it’s juveniles attacking your rudder, the juveniles will be part of a larger pod that will be feeding, and if you motor away quickly, they won’t follow you.
“Both of those tactics have worked for some boats. And both of those have not worked for some boats.
“If you have to go through waters where they are, monitor traffic lights on apps and get into shallow water. That should be less than 20m deep and close to shore, if conditions permit. There have been no interactions reported in shallow water.”
Burbeck says that during the active season, there’s now a processions of boats creeping down the coast, particularly approaching the Gibraltar Straits. He advises those that are planning to travel this way to do so in daylight. It’s easier to see rocks, fishing pots and other dangers he says. Plus, if something goes wrong, “it’s easier for the life saving service to come out and rescue you.”
CA still collecting data about orca interactions and sinking boats
“We’re carrying on collecting reports in the hope that we’ll be able to say, ‘under these circumstances, you’re better off doing this’.”
But Burbeck is still lamenting the spread of data across multiple sites.
“Because it’s on all these sites [Facebook groups], it gets lost. Some people are still reporting to CA – we actively encourage more as that information will be there forever.
“GTOA has to pick up reports from all over the place – we get that data, but all it gives is the date and place, and we don’t know how the interaction went. The only reports we do know are the ones which are reported properly to the Cruising Association. We are actively asking for more reports. We don’t mind them weeks and months later as they stay on the database for researchers and other sailors.”
