The Killer Whales of Eden

The Thaua people, who reside around Twofold Bay on the South Coast of New South Wales, Australia, share a special bond with killer whales or orcas, which they call beowas. “We consider beowas to be our brothers,” writes Thaua historian Steven Holmes in a study published in Journal of Heredity in December 2023. According to Thaua beliefs, when a member of their community passes away, they are reincarnated as a beowa. Holmes recounts a personal anecdote involving his great-great-grandfather, a blind man who would walk along the beach singing to the beowas. The beowas would follow him along the beach communicating back and forth with him. “It was a strong friendship between these beowas, and my people,” Holmes reflects. “Whalers off Twofold Bay, New South Wales”, 1867 by Sir Oswald Brierly. The bond between the Thaua people and the beowas transcended mere companionship—it represented a relationship of mutual understanding and benefit. Over generations, the beowas assisted the men in hunting by herding other whales into the shallow waters of the bay, facilitating the whalers' task of finishing them off. While the men harvested the meat, the killer whales enjoyed the delicacy of the tongue. This unusual alliance was initially documented in 1844 by European whalers, yet Holmes indicates that this collaborative hunting tradition dates back centuries. The hunting expeditions typically occurred during winter, coinciding with the arrival of a population of killer whales in Twofold Bay. At times, the Thaua people would serenade the beowas, encouraging them to herd baleen whales closer to shore. With strategic precision, the beowas would ambush the baleen whales, tearing along their fins and flukes, while others swam beneath them to bite along the lip area. Some would breach atop the whale, near the blowhole, attempting to submerge and drown it. Once the prey was driven into shallower waters, local hunters swiftly dispatched them.