Hey, weirdos. Just wanted to let you know that on the Weird Darkness YouTube channel recently, we've been having fun doing a live chat each weeknight at 10.30 p.m. Central Time. I set up the YouTube channel to premiere a video at that time, usually the podcast episode for the day, and then during the premiere, we all hang out in the YouTube live chat. Even if you've already heard that day's episode here in the podcast, you're

still welcome to join us for the YouTube chat. It's every weeknight at 10.30 p.m. Central

time. And sometimes I do it over the weekends, too, because I have no social life whatsoever.

You can find my channel at weirddarkness.com slash YouTube. That's weirddarkness.com

slash YouTube. That's weirddarkness.com slash YouTube.

I'm Darren Marler, and this is a Weird Darkness bonus bike.

Something's happening in the waters between Spain and Portugal that marine biologists

can't fully explain.

A small group of Orcas, maybe 40 individuals at most, has developed a disturbing fixation

with sailing boats.

They're not hunting for food.

They're not defending territory.

They are systematically destroying rudders with a precision that feels almost methodical.

The encounters follow a specific routine that sailors have come to dread.

First comes the steady, deep breathing, that distinctive wush of orca exhalations breaking the surface tension.

Then the clicks and whistles of their communication, a language humans still can't decode.

The bolt jolts violently as several tons of marine predators slam into the hull. The

orcas circle back, ram again, always targeting the same spot, the rudder beneath the stern.

On August 30th, 2025, Valentin Otero was sailing his traditional wooden ship off O'Grove when

he heard two solid impacts against his vessel.

When he looked over the side, he saw them, a massive orca, around 23 feet long, accompanied

by a smaller companion.

...