Orca-Human Cooperation at Twofold Bay
Orcas and human whalers at Twofold Bay, Australia collaborated for decades hunting baleen whales. The Davidson family of Scottish whalers worked with orcas including the famous Old Tom from the 19th century through 1930, continuing Aboriginal traditions spanning thousands of years.
The Law of the Tongue Agreement
Orcas and human whalers at Twofold Bay maintained an explicit resource-sharing agreement called “the Law of the Tongue” that persisted through multiple generations of both species.
Old Tom's Betrayal and Death
Old Tom, the most famous orca partner, died in 1930 seven years after John Logan broke the Law of the Tongue during a 1923 hunt. Logan’s decision to immediately retrieve a harpooned humpback violated the sacred agreement.
Orca Intelligence and Adaptive Hunting
Orcas possess the second-largest brains in the animal kingdom after sperm whales, enabling highly social behavior, wide sound repertoires, and distinct pod cultures with adaptive hunting methods.
Aboriginal Yuin Nation Orca Tradition
The Aboriginal Yuin Nation maintained spiritual and practical relationships with Twofold Bay orcas for thousands of years before European contact. They revered orcas with beliefs linking people and whales.