Killer whales off the Palos Verdes Peninsula may be hunting gray whales

Captain Carl Mayhugh from the Christopher at Harbor Breeze Cruises is reporting at least 4 killer whales, including a calf are off Point Vicente in Southern California and headed west on Wednesday afternoon.

"We just left them reported," Mayhugh at 2:15pm. "There were at least 4 orcas there and may have been as many as 7. They came right to the boat with one of them rolling on it's side while a couple of others were holding their tails in the air."

Mayhugh also reported that there were 4 gray whales hiding in the kelp. "There were 2 cow/calf pairs hiding in the kelp," said Mayhugh. "The orcas were more than likely hunting for the baby gray whales and the moms were just protecting them.

Gray whale calves are a favorite snack for orcas. Killer whales eat up to 5% of their body weight each day. This averages out to over 500 pounds of food for each orca.

"It has been a truly memorable day," said Mayhugh. "We saw thousands of dolpins, gray whales and finished up with a great show from the orcas. It doesn't get any better than this."

Video is from earlier in 2012 and was shot on board the Christopher.