The New Zealand man was filmed trying for it

New Zealand officials have fined a man hundreds of dollars for what they say was a display of “shocking and stupid behavior” after he was filmed jumping from a boat in an attempt to “body slam” an orca that was swimming next to a calf.

In a press release on Tuesday, New Zealand’s Department of Conservation said it had been made aware of a video posted on Instagram in February showing the 50-year-old performing the act. The department said he was off the coast of Devonport, Auckland, when the video was shot, “in what appears to be a deliberate attempt to touch or ‘body bump’ the orca”.

“At one point in the video, the man shouts ‘I touched it’ to other people on the boat, before asking ‘you got it?’, apparently referring to filming his pranks,” the department said. “Other people on board the ship laugh and cheer as they watch.”

This action, they added, “showed reckless disregard for his own safety – and that of the adult male orca with a calf swimming alongside the vessel.”

“The video really blew us away,” said Hayden Loper, the lead investigative officer at the Department of Conservation.

“Like the initial attempt to dive into the animal, the human stays in the water and then swims back to it in a second attempt to touch it,” Loper said. “This is stupid behavior [sic] and demonstrates a shocking disregard for the welfare of the orca. It is extremely irresponsible.”

Orcas, commonly known as killer whales, are the largest members of the dolphin family and are considered “nationally critical” in New Zealand, meaning they are “facing an imminently high risk of extinction”. No more than 200 of the animals are estimated to roam the country’s waters, with ship traffic posing a major threat. Swimming with marine mammals or disturbing them in any way is illegal.

Given recent incidents off the coast of Spain in which orcas have sunk ships, as well as the animals’ massive size — they can grow to nearly 30 feet long — DOC said the situation could have ended horribly for humans. involved. “Any sudden movement” near the animals could risk the possibility of injury, they said.

“Orcas are extremely powerful animals, and this really could have ended horribly – with the startled whale being injured, or the man responsible being harmed by the burdened animal,” Loper said.

The Auckland man has been hit with a $600 fine after the department said he committed an act that “shows a shocking and foolish attitude towards protected marine mammals”. The whales involved in the incident do not appear to have suffered significant injuries or distress, the department said on social media.