Gladis the killer whale strikes again! Sailing vessel off Gibraltar becomes the first this year to be sunk by orcas that have been targeting boats in the area since 2020

• A pod of 15 Iberian killer whales - known as gladis - connected to ship sinkings

A sailing vessel off Gibraltar has become the first this year to be sunk by orcas that have been targeting boats in the area since 2020. 

Crew members of the Alboran Cognac boat called rescue services for help around 9am on Sunday, saying that their ship had been damaged by orcas 14 miles from Cape Spartel, at the southern entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar, in Moroccan waters.

The sailors said they had felt hits on the hull, before their rudder was damaged and they noticed a leak threatening to sink their 50ft boat, local outlet El Pais reports.

They were swiftly rescued by a nearby oil tanker around 10am, but the sailboat drifted off and sank following the orca attack.

Experts reportedly believe that the first ship wreck caused by orcas should be attributed to 15 Iberian killer whales, which are known as gladis.

The pod - led by worst culprits White Gladis, Black Gladis and Grey Gladis - are moving between the north of the Iberian Peninsula and the Strait of Gibraltar and have destroyed several boats over the years. 

They have been connected to a total of seven shipwrecks - five sailboats and two fishing vessels - and hundreds of terrifying encounters in which they attacked boats in the area off Gibraltar, Spain, Portugal, France and Morocco.

Experts say ramming of boats is just a game for the marine mammals and a sign of sociability rather than a fight for survival.

An Atlantic Orca Task Force (GTOA) has been set up to manage the pod and has recorded at least 673 interactions - when the killer whales approach boats with or without contact - between the pod of orcas and vessels since 2020.

A study in Marine Mammal Science in 2022 concluded that the attacks on small boats follow the same pattern: orcas join in approaching from the stern, disabling the boat by hitting the rudder, and then lose interest.

The orcas may be teaching others how to pursue and attack boats, particularly their calves, experts have said.

Some even think that one orca learned how to stop the boats, and then went on to teach others how to do it.

Just last year dozens of vessels were damaged in the attacks, with footage showing the orcas tearing off rudders and ramming into the sides of small sailboats.

In one terrifying encounter last June, an orca circles a high-end yacht before savagely tearing off its rudder - leaving the boat's crew adrift off the coast of Gibraltar.

The vessel, a 48-foot catamaran, was attacked during a delivery voyage, with footage showing the whale biting off part of the boat which is crucial for steering.

The captain of the Bali 4.8, who has experienced orca attacks in the area before, said he noticed the 'unusual motion of the boat' before seeing a pod of four or five orcas emerge.