How do you tell a resident killer whale from a transient killer whale?

Answer 1

resident whales travel in more predictable parterns then the transiant pods and can't dive for as long. also resident pods eat smaller prey then transiant pods. transiant pods prefer larger prey such as seals.

Answer 2

A resident killer whale maintains a diet of only fish, and typically has a shortish dorsal fin. A transient killer whale may consume nearly any species of aquatic mammal, and typically has a taller and straiter dorsal fin than does a resident; however, there are always exceptions to this, as transients may sometimes have smaller dorsal fins as well, whereas some residents may be found to have uncharacteristically tall dorsal fins. Of course, the male orcas of either breed will always have taller dorsal fins than the females. Overall, it is usually quite difficult to physically distinguish a resident from a transient, but i hope this somewhat helped :)