Photo Gallery on Battlefords News-Optimist

Residents on the south shore of Bowen Island and a few nearby fishing boats were treated to a rare show Tuesday evening. Haig Farris sent in these photos of a two-hour battle between a large sea lion and a pod of 10 or so orcas. "It was terrifying, sad, exciting, tragic and powerful!" wrote Farris. "On occasion a large orca would throw the sea lion, like a wet rag, right out of the water. Mostly the orcas swam into the sea lion at high speed. Other times smaller orcas including very young ones just swam along side the injured sea lion. "After two hours of repeated pummelling, the sea lion slipped beneath the waves off our house never to be seen again: Nature in the raw! "You wouldn’t want a pet orca!"