Hey, I love orchids and have a few, but I am terrible at keeping them alive. I've so far managed to keep one alive and actually managed to get it to grow a leaf, but it died after I moved.

Recently, two of my current orchids started loosing their flowers, and the stems turned brown.

One of my other orchids lost some of its flowers on one stem, but it is still looking good otherwise.

What am I doing wrong here?
I did forget to water them for about two weeks, but I've since watered them again, and their roots are all good-looking.
I have never used fertilizer, but I have one at home.
They don't get direct sunlight, but do have it fairly bright. Yes, I have my curtains shut atm because its so unbearably hot where I live, but this problem started before that.
Any tips?

https://preview.redd.it/ion58wr6n19h1.png?width=1536&format=png&auto=webp&s=4cb654a450fcc5d77eaa48b21010f97741ea9685

https://preview.redd.it/x6qzg8j7n19h1.png?width=1536&format=png&auto=webp&s=10b8811376a8f7bff5a34215e89033aadf19082f

https://preview.redd.it/3ia2b57dn19h1.png?width=1536&format=png&auto=webp&s=f5142da9d525dce92746366843d7b674ad96b1c9

Introduction to killer whales - ectoypes Part 1.

Ecotypes are groups of organisms within a species that are adapted to specific environmental conditions. They exhibit genetic, behavioral, structural, or physiological differences from other members of the species.
Today, ten ecotypes are widely recognized. However, defining the various ecotypes of orca is difficult. And many researchers believe there should only be nine.

Residents, Transients, Offshore, Type 1 North Atlantic, and Type 2 North Atlantic are recognized in the Northern Hemisphere.
In the Southern Hemisphere, Types A, B1, B2, C, and D are recognized.

However, within the scientific community, the Type 2 North Atlantic is not recognized.

In 2009, Dr. Foote proposed two ecotypes (North Atlantic Type 1 and 2), based on museum specimens and stranded killer whales. He noticed morphological differences between the killer whales.

In his paper, he described Type 1 North Atlantic killer whales as generalist feeders, consuming fish and occasionally marine mammals such as seals. These whales showed heavy tooth wear associated with fish consumption. Thus, Type 1 included most North-Eastern Atlantic killer whales.

Dr. Foote describes Type 2 North Atlantic killer whales as marine mammal hunters. The 5 individuals displayed very little tooth wear, suggesting a diet based on marine mammals.
The recognition of Type 2 was based on stranded whales in the Faroe Islands and Scotland.

However, samples of the five individuals were too decomposed or damaged for accurate DNA analysis.
5 Individuals are not an accurate representation of a potential ecotype. The data supporting two distinct ecotypes are insufficient.

Since then, research has documented the prey-switching abilities of some Icelandic and Norwegian orcas. Research showed that some individuals feed on seals and fish.

Even D. Foote himself has since proposed removing one of the ecotypes. In a paper published in 2022, he suggested that North Atlantic Type 1 and 2 be grouped.

In Part 2, I will cover the separate ecotypes more closely. This is just an introduction to the number of ecotypes and to why many other researchers and I believe North Atlantic Type 1 and 2 should be grouped.

Introduction to killer whales - Orcinus ater and Orcinus rectipinnus

Orcinus ater and Orcinus rectipinnus are two suggested new species, separate from the universally recognized Orcinus Orca.
Orcas are considered a single worldwide species, Orcinus Orca, with different ecotypes across regions.
In the North Pacific, three killer whale ecotypes have been described. Offshores, Residents, and Transients.

Very little is known about offshore killer whales due to their tendency to be far offshore and be wary of boats. In 2003, the Species at Risk Act listed them as vulnerable to becoming threatened or endangered. They primarily prey on sharks.

Southern Resident killer whales (also known as Residents, or SRKWs) are primarily coastal and historically found mostly in waters of the Salish Sea. Since their primary prey, Chinook salmon, is declining in numbers, they have become less common in the Salish Sea, traveling down to central California and up into the coastal waters of the western Pacific at times. SRKWs exclusively feed on fish, primarily Chinook salmon.

Bigg's killer whales (also known as transients) were infrequently seen in the Salish Sea, but have become more common. They're often observed on the continental shelf in temperate to Arctic waters, though their distribution beyond the shelf is not well documented. They prey on mammals.

|Expected range maps for (a) resident and (b) Bigg’s killer whales|

SRKWs and Bigg's killer whales diverged from common ancestors over 300,000 years ago. Since then, they have undergone severe behavioral and morphological changes.

Prey:

Bigg's are mammals-eating specialists, preying on seals, sea lions, porpoises, dolphins, and whales.
Residents prey exclusively on fish, primarily chinook salmon.
Their diet has drastically shaped their culture and morphology.

Vocalization and hunting:

Residents are a lot more vocal than Bigg's, communicating almost constantly. Residents feed on fish and do not rely on stealth. Compared to Bigg's killer whales, residents tend to be more surface active.

Bigg's killer whales rely on stealth, and because whales, dolphins, and porpoises can hear their vocalization, they largely remain silent.

Echolocation:

In addition, the echolocation of Residents is much more complex and developed. Residents use echolocation to hunt and can differentiate between size, weight, and type of fish based on the fish's swim bladder.
Bigg's do not rely on echolocation to hunt, but are capable of it.

|Echolocation of killer whales|

Teeth:

Transients have larger, thicker jaws. Their skulls have evolved for grabbing, tearing, and ramming.

Residents are smaller and have smaller, slimmer jaws.

|Bigg's on the left, Resident on the right. Notice the more robust skull and wider rostrum of the Bigg's|

Teeth:

Bigg's teeth are thicker and more robust, with a slight hook shape that can become worn over time. Their teeth appear more blunt, likely caused by direct contact with bones and hides of their prey.

Resident teeth are narrower and have a hooked shape that allows interlocking of their prey. They have worn tips as well as worn sides caused by the friction of teeth interlocking together.

|Comparison of the teeth of trasients and residents.|

Size:

Transient males are around 27 ft (8.2 m) long, and females are 23 ft (7 m) long. They are larger and more muscular.

Residents are smaller. Males are about 24 ft (7.2 m) long, and females 21 ft (6.4 m) long.

|Notice the larger, more muscular Bigg's killer whale.|

Saddle patches and dorsal fins:

Transients have saddle patches that are closed and often heavily scarred. Their dorsal fins are tall with a wider base. The dorsal fins of females are slightly triangular with a pointed tip and a wider base.

|T037A2 Inky and T037A4 Crinkle, two Bigg's killer whales. Note the wider base and closed saddle patches|

Resident saddle patches tend to be more open. They have taller dorsal fins that may lean forward. The females have curved dorsal fins with a rounded tip.

|J27 Blackberry and J16 Slick. Two Southern Resident Killer whales. Note the smaller base and open saddle patches|

Social structure:

Bigg's killer whales travel in smaller groups, and typically hunt in small, matrilineal groups. After a successful hunt, the prey is shared among the group, which is an important bonding tool for the whales.

Residents maintain tight-knit family groups but are often seen traveling in large groups consisting of multiple matrilines.

Relationship between the subspecies:

Biggs and residents do not interbreed. On the contrary, Biggs and transients typically avoid each other. Residents have been known to disturb Biggs' hunts on occasion.

There are even theories suggesting Biggs killer whales have preyed on and maybe cannibalised residents. (I will cover the alleged cannibalism in another post.)

Necessity for conservation:

Separating different ecotypes into distinct subspecies is essential for their conservation. Currently, Orcinus Orca is listed as data deficient by the IUCN. While some ecotypes are thriving, some are at the brink of extinction. Separating the ecotypes into subspecies would highlight vulnerable subspecies and help conservation efforts.

New scientific names:

Residents would be named Orcinus ater (Cope in Scammon, 1869), and Bigg's Orcinus rectipinnus (Cope in Scammon, 1869).

Orcinus rectipinnus: Rect means upright, and pinna means fin.

Orcinus ater: Ater means black or dark.

Introduction to killer whales - size

Orcas vary greatly in size, and the difference between ecotypes is noticeable.
Killer whales are the biggest dolphins. Size and weight depend on the ecotype. Mammal-eating orcas tend to be bigger.

Most females are 5 to 7 meters long, and males can reach up to 8 meters.
The smallest ecotype is the Ross Sea Orca, also known as Type C. Males reach up to 6 meters. The largest ecotype is Type A. Males can grow up to 9 meters, and females 8 meters.

Multiple factors influence the size of an individual within an ecotype.

Genetics plays an essential role in their size. Genetic makeup dictates their potential size. Orcas from different populations have evolved unique traits, including variations in size.
This variation in size is largely influenced by their diet and environment. Mammal-eating orcas tend to be bigger than those specializing on fish and smaller prey. Size may also be linked to prey availability.

Orcas in colder regions tend to be larger than those in temperate waters. This difference likely stems from their need for additional body mass and blubber to sustain their body heat.

Determining the length of killer whales is difficult. Especially in the wild, orcas are typically measured using drones. Measuring lengths and weights is considerably easier in captivity. Both captive and wild measurements can be inaccurate. There are multiple debates about the precise size of individuals in both the wild and captivity.

Even the largest killer whale in captivity is debated.

Measures of Tilikum are the best-documented and most verifiable. In 2016, his size was measured at 6.71 meters (22ft). His weight was recorded at 5,352 kg (11,800 lb) in the same year. These measurements are consistently cited in zoological records.

Tyson or 泰森 is often dubbed the largest orca in captivity. He measured 7.3 meters in January 2024. However, there are no peer-reviewed sources, official measurements, or a consistent dataset. Those numbers are often taken from social media, aquarium promotional material, or estimates.

Determining the biggest killer whale in the wild is significantly more difficult.

Multiple sources state that the largest orca ever recorded was 9.8 meters long and weighed more than 10 tonnes. The biggest female was supposedly 8.5 meters long.

There are very few details on the origin of this claim. Further, the orcas were never identified.

These figures usually trace back to mid-20th-century measurements of stranded or harvested animals. The location is only occasionally cited (e.g, Alaska, 1959), and the original measurement reports are rarely cited directly in modern articles. Thus, these measurements are not verified.

The largest reliably documented orcas come from Norwegian whaling records.
Between 1938 and 1967, Norwegian whalers operated in multiple locations such as Iceland, the UK, and Norway. Thus, it is difficult to determine the exact origin of this whale.
According to these records, a 32 ft (9.8 m) orca was caught.
However, as with all whaling records, these data were reported by whalers, not by biologists or inspectors. Not all records of the whaling operations were published in accessible datasets. Many remain in the archives. No specimen ID, weight, or photos are available.

Introduction to killer whales - Dorsal fins

The dorsal fin of orcas is the largest dorsal fin of all cetaceans.
The dorsal fin exhibits sexual dimorphism. Dorsal fins of males can reach up to 1.8 m (5ft 11 inches) and are erect and almost triangle-shaped. Female dorsal fins are approximately half the size of adult males and curved. While the cause of this sexual dimorphism is unknown, the difference could be attributed to sexual preferences or other social or ecological pressures.

Orca dorsal fins are made of tense tissue called collagen instead of bone or cartilage. Collagen hardens late in adolescence. Because of this, they may collapse in captivity.

Dorsal fin collapse occurs in almost all captive males and some females. The exact reason for dorsal fin collapse in captivity remains unknown, but many theories have been proposed.
Dorsal fin collapse likely originates from an irreversible structural damage to the collagen over time.
Alternations in water pressure and the lack of support from the surrounding water may be a cause. In the wild, dorsal fins are supported by the surrounding water pressure during high-speed movement and deep diving.
Lowered blood pressure from reduced activity may also be a reason for dorsal fin collapse.
Overheating of the collagen from greater exposure of the fin to sunlight may also be a reason.

Bending or fully collapsed dorsal fins are rarely observed in the wild.

In a 1998 study by Ingrid Visser, 125 orcas in New Zealand were observed. 23% of adult males in one population of 30 had dorsal fin abnormalities. This unusually high rate is likely due to New Zealand having the highest rate of boat collisions involving orcas. Overall, only one of the 125 observed orcas (0,8%) had a collapsed dorsal fin.

In British Columbia, the number of collapsing or bent dorsal fins sits at 4,7%.

Dr. Astrid van Ginneken's concluded that less than 1% of all orcas have a collapsed dorsal fin.

The exact reason for dorsal fin collapse in the wild is unknown. However, it is likely to assume that dorsal fin collapse may be linked to an acute physical stressor rather than environmental conditions.

A theory claims that diet may contribute to the collapse. The most used example to support this theory are Port and Starboard. Port and Starboard are two African killer whales that prey primarily on sharks. Their dorsal fins are collapsed. While this may indicate a direct link between prey and dorsal fin collapse, there is no further evidence to support this theory. New Zealand orcas feed primarily on rays and sharks, yet, as with other populations feeding on sharks, there is no unusually high rate of dorsal fin collapse.

Trauma to the dorsal fin (e.g., boat strikes, raking) may also be a cause of dorsal fin collapse.

Other than that, dorsal fin collapse has been linked to old age, emaciation, and other various factors.

https://preview.redd.it/bzgflnbuf28h1.png?width=736&format=png&auto=webp&s=892a67573c84afe988822e54b2f4b20f61108ea5

|T63 Chainsaw, one of the most famous dorsal fins|

https://preview.redd.it/z8d1x4gmg28h1.png?width=726&format=png&auto=webp&s=8052f13ea3de7381f351ebfb7c9404d03a3257cf

|Port and Starboard|

Hey, does anyone have any research papers, pictures, or images from books explaining the anatomy of orca skulls?
I keep finding amazing pictures of orca skulls, but always without highlighting the separate bones or marking them.
I've already worked with bottlenose anatomy a bit, but they do differ in some things. I'm not educated at all in anatomy, so I'm just getting into it.
What I need is ideally a picture with all skull bones marked and named.
Would appreciate it if anyone could help me out!

Introduction to killer whales

I am making this post for people still learning about orcas to give you easier access to information. I primarily summarize studies or join together multiple sources to give you a clear understanding of the subject. I am still learning myself, and I am currently working on a comprehensive review of Orca biology and behavior. I plan on making a website for this, too. If you're interested in another topic, let me know! As I said, I am still learning myself. I've only really been into orcas for less than a year.

Saddle patches vary greatly in individuals, and even vary between the left and right sides of each individual. The saddle-patch usually develops early in life and does not change, unless there is trauma (e.g., from boat strikes or rake marks). Therefore, saddle patches are used to identify individuals.

Saddle patch classifications in orca are not standardized, and terminology can vary between sources. A saddle patch described as ‘hooked’ in one source may be referred to as ‘open’ in another.
In this review, we will utilize the five variations proposed by Sugarman and used by Baird and Stacey, i.e., "Smooth," "Bump," "Horizontal notch," "Vertical notch," and "Hook," collectively referred to as "SBS-5". In a study published by Pirjo H. Mäkeläinen, Ingrid N. Visser, Tracy E. Cooper, and Mathieu Cusson, a sixth variation was introduced termed "Other", collectively referred to as "SBS-5+1." The "Other" category includes saddle patches that were not present, could not be clearly discerned, opaque, or not one of the SBS-5 categories, such as "Arabque" shape describes by Saski et al.

https://preview.redd.it/tlgq2edn453h1.png?width=1189&format=png&auto=webp&s=58a70b7e7eb6e5296f79077b232e3cea630f9afd

In the above-mentioned study, 3,909 saddle patch shapes were classified. 3,428 of which were left saddle patches and 481 right saddle patches. The orca were distributed in 48 GP/E (geographic populations/ecotypes).

Globally, the SBS-5 saddle patches accounted for 97.6%. Only 2.4% were classified as "Other". Only the Pacific Ocean Basin presented examples of GP/E that had SBS-5+1 saddle patch shapes (2), i.e., Southern Residents and Japan Residents.
For size comparison of the saddle patches, Pirjo H. Mäkeläinen, Ingrid N. Visser, Tracy E. Cooper, and Mathieu Cusson developed a ratio calculation of saddle path width (at widest) compared to the dorsal fin width (at base).
The ratios are categorized as "narrow" (<0.50), "medium" (0.50-0.70), and "wide" (>0.70).

 

https://preview.redd.it/ohfx6jne553h1.png?width=2128&format=png&auto=webp&s=a16552571e8cabb1661c0db381e4971fec760526

Overall, narrow is the most common saddle patch size ratio with 65.8%, while 20% and 14.2% were medium and wide.

https://preview.redd.it/f15njum2653h1.png?width=858&format=png&auto=webp&s=8f2d9da0e9f677836ccbebbb4dcfb862fa7c96a8

 

https://preview.redd.it/uksqkdhg553h1.png?width=2128&format=png&auto=webp&s=6bb9b7b5e48e6d57bf16332692ee2ec2f8b2cf5e

 
Study: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mms.13171