Killer whale rips open whale shark's belly to get liver

A killer whale swallowed the liver and left the 8-meter-long shark's carcass to sink to the bottom of the ocean off the coast of Mexico .

Killer whales eat whale sharks' livers. (Video: Ocean Safaris).

A killer whale ripped open a whale shark's belly and ate its liver off the coast of Baja California, Mexico, Live Science reported on July 28. Rare footage shows the killer whale swimming upside down underneath the whale shark and biting into its belly, causing blood to spurt from the wound. After the killer whale finished its meal, it charged to the surface as the whale shark's motionless body sank to the bottom.

The video was filmed by James Moskito, CEO of California-based ocean tour company Ocean Safaris, during an expedition to the Gulf of California in April. He noticed the whale shark and approached it. When he was about 6 feet from the surface, Moskito saw the killer whales charging and knew they were going to attack the whale shark's underbelly.

The whale shark ( Rhincodon typus ) is the largest shark on Earth, reaching lengths of up to 18 m. Healthy adults have few natural predators, while injured juveniles are occasionally preyed upon by tiger sharks ( Galeocerdo cuvier ) and killer whales ( Orcinus orca ) .

Killer whales eat the liver and leave their prey motionless to sink.

Although killer whales have been filmed attacking baby whale sharks, Moskito's footage is the first to show the killing of an adult, estimated to be 27 feet (8.2 m) long. The attack, he said, lasted only a few seconds. The killer whale ate the liver and left its prey, motionless, to sink.

Shortly after the encounter, Moskito and his fellow passengers witnessed a killer whale attack and kill another whale shark. When they arrived, the whale shark was struggling at the surface with a killer whale clinging to it. Moskito said a large adult killer whale named Montezuma was involved in both attacks.

Shark livers are rich in nutrients, full of oils and fats. Killer whales around the world have been eating shark livers for decades . According to Alison Kock, a marine biologist at the South African National Parks Service, shark livers are large and buoyant, so the organ floats on the surface of the water when the shark is killed, making it easier for killer whales to spot and access than other organs that may sink to the bottom and be difficult to find.