Orcas sunk ships, a famed whale was almost freed, and more amazing whale stories from 2023

Whale whale whale, if it isn’t the end of another year filled with stunning news about the ocean and some of its most prolific inhabitants. 

If you were among the many people (like myself)  who clung onto memes about supporting orcas’ hopeful overthrowing of humankind as a way to dull the seemingly endless amount of bad news, I’d like to offer an end-of-year gift to you all: a roundup of USA TODAY’s best whale stories.  

In case you align yourself with the disgruntled boat owners who are currently “at war” with orcas that learned how to to sink ships (and therefore want nothing to do with those stories), we also covered the very real challenges, and less frequent hopeful feats, that these marine mammals faced this year. 

Top 10 trending whale headlines covered by USA TODAY in 2023

Feds research whale mystery after more than a dozen dead whales wash up along East Coast

In January, USA TODAY reported on a number of whale deaths. At least 20 marine mammals and various whale species had been found dead on beaches from Maine to Florida since Nov. 28, 2022, which prompted concerns from conservation groups and others. At the time of USA TODAY's report, the National Marine Fisheries Service was in the midst of three separate investigations into an increase in deaths among Atlantic Coast whales.

Whale deaths overall have been unusually high for years, but some species have also experienced a rebound.

More:Climb aboard four fishing boats with us to see how America's warming waters are changing

Nearly two dozen sharks found dead after two killer whales' 'surgical' feeding frenzy

A surgical feeding frenzy off the African coast by a pair of orcas, also known as killer whales, left at least 20 sharks dead, USA TODAY reported in March. "Port" and "Starboard," an infamous pair of killer whales, were prime suspects in the killings.

In 2022, a paper in the Ecological Society of America’s journal Ecology showed the first confirmed observation of a group of orcas hunting a great white shark. 

One-fifth of endangered right whale population seen feeding off New England coast

The coast of New England is one of two designated habitats for the critically endangered North Atlantic right whales, and in late March, observers found about one-fifth of their entire population swimming off Massachusetts’ Cape Cod coast. Patrol vessels safeguarded between 60 to 70 right whales – an endangered species with fewer than 350 in the North Atlantic  – from boat traffic.

Boats off Spain's coast are seeing more killer whales touch, push and even turn vessels

Experts first documented juvenile Iberian killer whales  — a "unique subpopulation of killer whales that lives in the northeast Atlantic," — touching, pushing, and even turning vessels, including some fishing and inflatable boats, in 2020. As the number of incidents steadily climbed over the next three years, so did concerns over whether orcas may be teaching fellow killer whales to ambush boats.

Orca attacking boat near Scotland marks first in North Sea, following Iberian coast incidents

In June, USA TODAY reported an orca that hit a seven-ton yacht carrying a 72-year-old multiple times off the Shetland Islands in Scotland. The Atlantic Orca Working Group reported over 500 orca boat interactions from 2020 to 2023, yet this encounter marked the first recent incident reported in the northern seas.

Watch: Boat taking part in The Ocean Race has 'scary moment' with pod of orcas

How long do orcas live?Killer whales rule the seas, but their clock ticks just like ours.

Two boats taking part in the The Ocean Race had run-ins with killer whales in June, USA TODAY reported. Team JAJO's "scary moment" with a pod of three orcas in the Atlantic Ocean while approaching the Straights of Gibraltar was caught on video.

'Lolita the whale' made famous by her five decades in captivity, dies before being freed

Whale-lovers briefly rejoiced this year when news broke that Lolita, an orca whale who served as a main attraction at the Miami Seaquarium, would be freed after five decades of captivity. That joy quickly turned into grief when Lolita died in August as plans were in motion to free her. At 56, Lolita was one of the oldest orcas in captivity. Animal activists fought for her freedom for decades, arguing that she deserved to return to her home in the Pacific Northwest.

Watch: Frosty the white orca seen hunting with pod off California in 'incredible encounter'

In October, whale watchers off the coast of California were treated to an incredible sight when a "super rare" white orca made an appearance near their boat.

Why are orcas attacking boats and sometimes sinking them?

In July, USA TODAY’s Graphics team spoke with experts to try and answer the "million dollar question" – why are orcas attacking boats?

Orcas strike back (again), sinking another yacht in Europe after 45-minute attack

Sailors’ newest nightmare struck again, and on Halloween of all days. A pod of orcas in southwestern Europe sank a sailing boat on Oct. 31 after a non-stop, 45-minute attack.  The incident was the fourth occurrence  in two years where orcas were blamed for sinking ships in southwestern Europe.

Contributing: Dinah Voyles Pulver, Mary Walrath-Holdridge, Natalie Neysa Alund, Anthony Robledo, Jace Evans, James Powel, Amanda Lee Myers