Pygmy Orca

Description

The Pygmy Orca is a river-dwelling relative of the larger Orca whale. In coloration it displays similar patterns of black and white to its larger cousin, light below and dark above, along with a similar rounded head, but in size it is only slightly larger and heavier than an adult human.

Habitat & Range

Pygmy Orcas favour large rivers, and can be found in most rivers in Creation, though they tend to flourish most successfully in the River Province and the Northeastern Threshold.

Diet & Behaviour

Pygmy Orcas are aggressive pack hunters, highly coordinated and very cunning. They move quietly through the water, rarely making themselves known, but a pack consists of between ten and one hundred of the creatures. Their favoured prey are River Whales, but they also eat all manner of fish and other river-dwelling creatures, and will take terrestrial creatures attempting to ford or swim waters deep enough for the orcas to remain submerged. They have even been known to take elephants or yeddim crossing fords as part of trade caravans, and they have little hesitation in devouring humans if the opportunity arises. In the Northeast, along the Golden Leaf Canal, Pygmy Orcas have been spotted expelling half-eaten fish to the surface of the water, luring birds such as Diving Herons which they can swallow up.

Cultural Significance

Pygmy Orcas are well known, and often feared, by cultures dwelling along rivers where they reside. They are hunted for their meat, skin (which can be cured into leather), blubber, and oil, though they are not as oil-rich as most whales. In addition to this value, some fishermen attack the whales as they are both voracious devourers of local fish stocks and consumers of fishers as well.

As river hunters themselves, the Linowan are particularly fond of Pygmy Orcas, and imagery drawn from the animal is a common motif for many boat clans… this does not, however, mean that Linowan hunters or orcas show the other any mercy when they meet hungry on the water.

Their clever tactics cause some in the Haltan Republic to consider Pygmy Orcas to be san-beasts, but others argue for campaigns to purge them due to their devouring of Haltan messenger birds.