Given the increasing numbers of killer whale attacks in the waters of southwestern Europe, sailors are having to try some unique approaches to warding them off, and they’ve just hit upon something particularly effective: heavy metal music. Many claim that playing the genre loudly through underwater speakers has effectively prevented attacks, per The Independent.
Heavy Metal + Killer Whales = A “Game Changer.”
Killer whales have become increasingly aggressive towards boats in recent years, with many vessels even being capsized by the orcas. Scientists have been at a loss when it comes to effective handling of the situation, and naval authorities haven’t been much better.
So, sailors have taken matters into their own hands and gone online to look for suggestions. Whoever first suggested playing heavy metal is unknown, but the unconventional deterrent is really gaining traction.
Sailors are sharing their favorite heavy metal playlists online.
On Facebook groups, Telegram chats, and various other online forums, sailors have been goodnaturedly sharing all their favorite Spotify playlists full of songs that they believe are particularly effective in keeping the whales at bay.
One of the most popular Spotify playlists at the moment is simply called “Metal for Orcas,” which includes some pretty intense songs including “Infinite Terror,” and “Exceptionally Sadistic.” Sweet!
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Heavy metal isn’t the only suggestion for warding off killer whale attacks.
In the Facebook group Orca Attack Reports, its 60,000 members are always coming up with new ideas to try. One of the most popular ones is throwing sand in the water before gunning the engine to speed away.
While all of the success stories regarding the effectiveness of metal music are anecdotal at best, many sailors do swear by the new approach.
“When we had an interaction last year, I’m pretty sure that rattling the hull by playing full volume east European thrash metal, was the game changer,” one person wrote. .
“They made three approaches and left after 5 mins without doing any damage… which was 2 or 3 minutes into the music.”
However, there are some sailors who say the music made no difference whatsoever.
“It is scary,” said German sailor Florian Rutsch, who tried playing heavy metal and throwing sand, to no avail. “No one knows what works, what doesn’t work.”
An orca damaged his catamaran’s rudders and disabled steering, leaving him to call for help to have his boat towed back to the dock.
