Do killer whales ever come to Cape/New England ?

[Blitzseeker]

Probably a stupid question for those who know these fish much better than I, but:

How the hell can a killer whale catch a giant tuna? Can't the tuna just turn on the jets and put a killer whale two miles behind it in a second flat?

[JohnnyD]

Originally Posted by Blitzseeker

Probably a stupid question for those who know these fish much better than I, but:

How the hell can a killer whale catch a giant tuna? Can't the tuna just turn on the jets and put a killer whale two miles behind it in a second flat?

I was wondering the same. Here's a quote from Wikipedia:

The killer whale's large size and strength make it among the fastest marine mammals, often reaching speeds in excess of 35 kn (65km/h).

65km/h converts to about 45MPH. I believe tuna have a cruising speed around 15-25MPH and bursts up to 50MPH.

[Fly Rod]

They have been seen off of Cape Ann on a rare occasion.

[joe the plumber]

I thought the same about a Bluefin's speed.The way Charlie told the story it appears that even if the tuna had the advantage of speed[which it seems they do not] the Killer Whales actually herded the tuna,then kept circling them,and then the whales would go into the school one at a time and pick them off.He told me he witnessed it with his own eyes as he was commercial fishing for them at the time,which explains why he was there.
The one thing that I will allways remember about him telling this story was how upset he was with the whales wasting so many big money fish.