Great white sharks might have a reputation as apex predators, but they’re not – the real top of the food chain in the ocean are these: orcas. In fact, two of them – nicknamed Port and Starboard – are on a great white killing spree and it's throwing the ecosystem just off the coast of South Africa into absolute chaos.
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00:00great white sharks might have a reputation as apex predators but they're not the real top of
00:08the food chain in the ocean are these orcas in fact two of them nicknamed port and starboard
00:13are on a great white killing spree and it's throwing the ecosystem just off the coast of
00:18south africa into absolute chaos orcas are known to target great whites specifically for their
00:22tasty and nutrient-dense livers now because of this behavior in areas where great whites once
00:27flourished they are now absent entirely as a result creatures like the cape fur seal are booming in
00:32number in turn decimating local fish populations that fishermen rely on other shark species are
00:38also booming as a result further turning the oceanic ecosystem on its head researchers say
00:43this is a unique ecological shift caused by a natural change in a species behavior what's wild
00:48however is that they don't know why this pair of orcas in particular has begun going after great
00:53white sharks and their livers so targetedly the long-term balance of the ecosystem is now uncertain
00:58but it's expected to see drastic changes from the past decade