A quick-thinking sea otter who found itself involved in a game of cat-and-mouse was left clambering onto a boat for safety after it was chased by an orca.
John Dornellas, 37, who works with Coldwater Alaska, an exploration company providing boat trips in the area, filmed the animal frantically swim towards his boat as the orca followed its movements in Halibut Cove Lagoon.
The sea otter jumped up onto the transom of the vessel Mr Dornellas was in just seconds before the orca, also known as a killer whale, emerged from the waters and swam away.
The sea otter jumps onto a boat in Halibut Cove Lagoon, Alaska, on July 26, after it is chased by a orca
The orca emerges from the water and swims up towards the boat in search of the sea otter before swimming away
John Dornellas (pictured), 37, who works with Coldwater Alaska, an exploration company providing boat trips in the area, filmed the sea otter clamber onto his boat
During the footage, which was captured on July 26, Mr Dornellas spots the killer whale make its appearance from beneath the waters and exclaims: ‘Oh my gosh. It’s coming right to the front of the boat!’.
Just seconds later, a sea otter emerges from the water and begins to swim towards the boat in search of safety as Mr Dornellas says: ‘Oh dude that poor otter wants to get the heck out of the water. Oh my gosh, oh this poor dude.’
The otter circles the outside of the boat before jumping onboard and looking back towards its predator in the water as Mr Dornellas says: ‘Come on up bud!’
Moments later, the sea otter, believing the coast is clear, jumps back into the water only to find the orca is still on its tail and jumps back into the boat.
Mr Dornellas later revealed that the otter hopped back into the water around four times before finally jumping onboard the boat and refusing to leave.
His fellow captain, Chantrelle Major, who also filmed the moment from her vessel nearby, watched in shock as the killer whale circled Mr Dornellas’ boat in search of the sea otter.
Eventually, once the orca had distanced itself from the boat, Mr Dornellas headed for his next pickup in Halibut Cove Lagoon.
The tour agency worker later discovered the female orca was the largest in her pod.
He said: ‘I felt absolute awe – there was a visceral energy in the air that I can’t explain, a powerful hunting energy coming from the orca.
The sea otter emerges from the water and begins to circle the boat that Mr Dornellas is on in search of safety
After swimming towards the vessel, the sea otter clambers onto the boat and looks back at its predator in the water
Mr Dornellas’ fellow captain, Chantrelle Major, who also filmed the moment from her vessel, watches in shock as the orca circles the boat
‘Utter, primal fear from the otter was also felt, but the combination of such power and helplessness left a knot in my stomach.
‘I felt incredibly fortunate to be able to see such an interaction.
‘I believe the orca had an otter pup in its mouth, so I’m guessing that’s why the otter kept getting back into the water, but eventually it climbed aboard, refusing to leave.
‘After days on end running the boat for fourteen hours a day, I was tired and feeling a bit low, but this ‘wink’ from God powered me right back up and made the rest of the day easy.
‘Nothing I could plan for or do could possibly arrange this encounter, so I was left feeling humble and grateful.’
Orcas, which were first given the name killer whales because they were observed to attack other marine animals, are the largest member of the dolphin family and live in groups in the sea called ‘pods’.
The sea animals, who are capable of navigating and hunting underwater, can often be seen in southeast Alaska between early May and early June.