Do whales really attack humans?

[Still Waters]

The revenge of a whale or an accidental tragedy? A dramatic retelling of the story that inspired Herman Melville's classic novel will be hitting our screens on BBC One this Sunday - but do whales really attack humans intentionally?

http://www.bbc.co.uk...onment-25430996

[SHaYap]

Yes they do ... the researchers are gagged by the Science Academia ... we suffer no such suppression ... Cape Buffaloes too have shown that they do carry a grudge ... and the most famous of all ... the elephants ...

~

[Neognosis]

Almost NEVER, except in captivity.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killer_whale_attacks_on_humans

Killer whales (or orcas) are powerful predators capable of killing prey much larger than humans, such as leopard seals and great white sharks. They have also been recorded preying on usually terrestrial species such as moose swimming between islands.^[1] However, wild orcas are not considered a real threat to humans, as there are few documented cases of wild orcas attacking people, and none of the recorded attacks have been fatal. There have been about two dozen cases of orcas attacking humans since the 1970s,^[2] almost exclusively perpetrated by captive animals. Experts are divided as to whether the injuries and deaths caused by captive killer whales have been accidents or deliberate attempts to cause harm.

[+DieChecker]

I thought I had read that Killer Whales have attacked a few people. Apparently killer whales specialize in their food source... tuna, sharks, seals, otters, penguins, or whatever. So, I believe that if a killer whale did try to kill someone it would be due to mistaken identity, because the whale thought the person was a seal, for instance.

As to true whales, I don't know. I always assumed Moby Dick was purely fiction.

[Golden Duck]

I wonder how the figures compare with other captive predators. It's always going to be risky being in proximity of these creatures.

While we are on the subject of dolphins...

...

But the hard science tells a different story about the supposed eternal calm nature, benevolence and good will of dolphins.

Trevor R. Spradlin and his colleagues presented a paper on this topic at the Wild Dolphin Swim Program Workshop.

They pointed out that "people have been seriously injured while trying to interact with wild dolphins" and "dolphins have been known to bite, ram, and pull people under the water's surface".

They also quoted a paper rather scarily entitled, Women and children abducted by a wild but sociable adult male bottlenose dolphin.

Dr Amy Samuels and her American colleagues carried out one study of 29 solitary dolphins — it was particularly illuminating.

In this study, only one dolphin — coincidentally called "Flipper" — was praised for "saving" a drowning boy. But the remaining 28 dolphins included kidnappers, some who were sexually aggressive, and some with very serious "anger issues".

...

http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2008/07/01/2291064.htm