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Orcinus orca

vr.tr.orcinus-orca · thing-q26843

Let an agent describe orcas, their ecotypes, behaviour, populations and protection, and point to wildlife-watching rules and authorities.

Thing Registry Physical world and living systems PHY.LIV
Bundle → Layer → Finding → QuestionsClassifiersWhat it isWhy it existsDistinguishing featuresWhat robots and AI may and may not doMoral aspectsOwnersLinks to other meta-modelsIdentity and identifiersDirect propertiesRecognitionCapabilities and actionsHazards and failure modesStandards and interfacesContext of useSources

Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled

4 bundles · 8 layers · 8 findings · 16 questions

Identification Recognising orcas.

Species

Field marks.

Field marks

Patches and fin shape.

  1. Which features confirm an orca? definition
  2. Could it be another species? boundary

Individuals and ecotypes

Photo-ID and ecotype.

Individual ID

Catalogue and ecotype.

  1. Which individual or pod is this? provenance
  2. Which ecotype does it belong to? definition
Biology How orcas live.

Social life

Pods and matrilines.

Social structure

Group composition.

  1. How is the group structured? definition
  2. How stable is it? definition

Diet

Prey by ecotype.

Diet

Main prey.

  1. What does this population eat? definition
  2. How has prey availability changed? measurement
Populations Numbers and trends.

Population size

Counts and trends.

Population estimate

Count, year, method.

  1. How many animals are in this population, by which survey? measurement
  2. Is it growing or declining? measurement

Threats

Main pressures.

Threat

Prey, pollution, noise.

  1. Which threats affect this population? definition
  2. Which evidence supports that? provenance
Protection and people Law and encounters.

Legal protection

Listings and laws.

Protection status

Listings by jurisdiction.

  1. Which protection applies here? provenance
  2. Which authority enforces it? provenance

Encounters

Watching and captivity.

Encounter rules

Distance and conduct rules.

  1. Which distance rules apply to boats here? boundary
  2. Where are captive orcas kept, under which rules? provenance

Classifiers Filled

Family
Thing Registry
Category
Physical world and living systems
Entry kind
thing
Plane
PHY
Domain
PHY.LIV
Other names and narrower kinds
Captive killer whales

What it is Filled

The orca or killer whale (Orcinus orca), the largest member of the oceanic dolphin family, a black-and-white toothed whale found in all oceans that lives in stable family groups and is an apex predator.

Why it exists Filled

Let an agent describe orcas, their ecotypes, behaviour, populations and protection, and point to wildlife-watching rules and authorities.

Distinguishing features Filled

  • The largest member of the oceanic dolphin family, and a toothed whale.
  • Ecotypes specialise in fish or marine mammals and rarely interbreed; some have been proposed as separate species or subspecies.
  • Individuals are identified by dorsal fin and saddle patch markings.
  • Social structure and vocal traditions vary between populations.

What robots and AI may and may not do Filled

Must not

  • advise approaching orcas closer than legal limits
  • give locations to harass animals
  • present one population's status as the species status

Only with a human decision

  • reports of stranded or entangled animals, which go to rescue networks

May

  • describe biology and status from sources
  • explain watching rules

Moral aspects Filled

  • animal welfare in captivity
  • conservation of small populations

Who is affected

  • orca populations
  • coastal communities

Owners Filled

Steward

nobody; a wild species protected by states and conventions

Master systems

  • IUCN Red List
  • regional photo-identification catalogues

Links to other meta-models Filled

parent

  • Q144144 - registry parent class

related

  • oceanic dolphin - family Delphinidae
  • fish and marine mammals - depending on ecotype
  • false killer whale - a different species
  • CITES - Appendix II

What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled

Identity and identifiers required Filled

  • Vercy registry: vr.tr.orcinus-orca
  • Wikidata: Q26843 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q26843)
  • scientific name: Orcinus orca (Linnaeus, 1758)
  • photo-identification catalogue ID: catalogue-specific for individual orcas

Direct properties required Filled

  • adult length: 5-9 m - males larger; exceptional males up to about 10 m
  • adult mass: 2-6 t - large males can exceed this

Recognition required Filled

  • White eye patch and grey saddle patch
  • Tall dorsal fin up to about 1.8 m in adult males
  • Travels in groups
  • A large dolphin with black upper body, white underside, white eye patch and grey saddle patch; males have a tall upright dorsal fin.

Capabilities and actions required Filled

  • identify an orca and its ecotype in general terms
  • describe behaviour and diet
  • state protection status from authoritative sources
  • point to responsible whale-watching rules

Hazards and failure modes required Filled

  • Prey depletion
  • Pollution with persistent chemicals
  • Vessel noise and disturbance
  • Welfare concerns in captivity

Standards and interfaces required Filled

  • CITES Appendix II
  • National protection, such as the US Endangered Species Act listing of the Southern Resident population
  • Whale-watching distance rules in many countries
  • IUCN Red List status (a conservation assessment, not law): Data Deficient globally, 2017

Context of use required Filled

  • North Pacific resident (fish-eating) ecotype
  • Bigg's or transient (mammal-eating) ecotype
  • offshore ecotype
  • Southern Ocean types A, B1, B2, C and D (D subantarctic)
  • provisional subspecies O. orca ater and O. orca rectipinnus (2026 list)

Sources Filled

  1. Q26843 - identity of the registry item, labels and sitelinks
  2. Orca - general description of the subject
  3. Killer Whale - biology and protection
  4. List of Marine Mammal Species and Subspecies - current taxonomy
  5. Killer whale ecotypes - Antarctic ecotypes
  6. Orcinus orca (Killer Whale) - global status

Open questions

  • Taxonomy is under revision; how should proposed species and subspecies be modelled?

Machine files

Card as JSON Specification Card backlog vercy.card/1

Provenance

thing registry research (pass 2) · unreviewed

Built from: models/things/publications/thing-q26843/spec.json