23 May 2013. Male orca stranded on Kaipara Harbour beach.
The orca’s name was Koru, and we don’t know how long he lay stranded before rescuers arrived.
Local fisherman were first on the scene; they kept him wet and alerted the experts.
Soon Dr. Ingrid Visser, a killer whale expert, came with her team to try to free Koru. She had been observing him for a while out in the ocean beforehand; she recognized him immediately.
Dr. Visser wanted to move him to deeper water and to do that she and her team had to dig under Koru. They started digging on one side and when they finished they eventually began on the other side.
As soon as they began on the other side Koru (who had stayed calm the entire time) slowly shifted his weight on the side they had completed so that they could dig more easily. All the while he was clicking softly. The entire rescue team was amazed.
Here we have an animal intelligent enough not to fight back, but also to actively help his rescuers save him.
P.S.
Orcas are and always will be my favorite animal!