Orcas, also known as killer whales, are one of the most reported-on yet misunderstood animals out there. Thousands and thousands of articles, books, films, TV programs and radio broadcasts have been produced about these magnificent creatures such as their lives and their interactions with mankind.
Despite this constant media attention, little is actually known about the orca and their important connections to us among the general public. To promote understanding and enthusiasm about orcas, the Natural History Museum of Utah has unveiled a new exhibit: “Orcas: Our Shared Future.”
Deep Dive Into Orcas
Containing over 140 artifacts, this new exhibit presents a deep dive into the world of orcas. Beginning with a brief history of human interactions with orcas, the exhibit explores conceptions of these creatures among Indigenous groups along what is now the northwest coast of North America. Focusing on the Kwakwaka’wakw and Haida peoples, the exhibit carefully points out how the reputation of orcas as fierce killers was not universal. These cultures view the orca as not only symbols of the bounty of the ocean but as literal and metaphorical kin.
The exhibit explains details of orca social organization, elucidating the various levels of familial association and introducing us to several specific whales by way of life-size reproductions. Here, the exhibit’s central thesis — that orcas aren’t so different from humans after all, sharing a common history and future — is demonstrated the most clearly. Signs, charts and maps all explain how every orca pod (a given group of related orcas living and working together), much like human cultures, has its own distinct behaviors, social structures and even communication methods, which are provocatively referred to as “language.”
The diversity of habitat and body size among killer whales is explained through easy-to-understand visuals, including striking replicas of orca skeletons. The theme of Indigenous knowledge systems is brought up again; the exhibit’s authors note that the degree of sophistication of orca social structure has been known to humans living around them for thousands of years.
Misunderstood Spirits
This idea is carried into the next room, which explores Indigenous views of orcas. Containing stunning works by Kwakwaka’wakw and Haida artists. As well as a National Film Board of Canada short “The Mountain of SGaana,” Haida animator Christopher Auchter’s tale of orcas and the Spirit World, this section leads nicely to the next.
Entering a thin and winding hallway flanked with film posters and memorabilia, the audience is introduced to conceptions of orcas within popular culture. With references to popular culture objects such as “Free Willy” and “Blackfish,” we are asked to confront our own perceptions of the killer whale, and how they are shaped by media.
In the exhibit’s final section, we are introduced to the negative aspects of human-orca interactions. This is the exhibit at its most didactic. Using several case studies, “Orcas: Our Shared Future” describes the negative impact human development has had on the safety and welfare of the orcas as a species. The central feature of this section is an interactive touch screen game, where players can move developments around a small coastal area in order to be more eco-friendly.
Orcas’ Future
The exhibit asks viewers to consider their own connection to orcas, and what it means to save them. While small in scale, “Orcas: Our Shared Future” is big in ideas.
If you’re interested in learning more about orcas or simply looking for a good way to spend an hour, take advantage of the free admission for University of Utah students and visit this wonderful little exhibit.
