Murdeshwar (Uttara Kannada): To a surprise for marine adventure enthusiasts, arguably for the first time, a flock of orca whales has been spotted near Murdeshwar near Netrani, and local tour operators believe this is good for tourism. .
This rare sighting comes two years after a baleen whale was spotted near Bhatkal. Although local residents say that orca whales have never been seen individually or in groups, experts say that sightings of this whale on the west coast are an annual affair.
Tourists and trainers saw the whales when they were visiting Netrani for scuba diving.
“There were three whales there and they were around the boat for more than half an hour,” said Ganesh Harikanthara, who runs Netrani Adventure Club.
However, cetacean biologist Deepani Sutaria, a member of the Cetacean Specialist Group, IUCN, said this is an annual phenomenon and these whales are seen every year.
“They are on their migratory route or on movement between the southern Bay of Bengal and the western Arabian Sea. They were seen between March and early December last year and in October in 2022. “They were spotted in southern Maharashtra, Mangaluru, Udupi, Lakshadweep, Minicoy and now near Murudeshwar.”
Professor Shivkumar Hargi, department of marine biology, Karnataka University, Dharwad, said the whales were moving north and were spotted for the first time near Murdeshwar.
“These whales, also known as killer whales, are aggressive. They are the primary predators in the ocean, eating more than 30 species of marine animals, including turtles, dolphins, seals and sharks. There is no species that needs to be feared. But there are no examples of killer whales attacking humans,” he said.
While some tourists expressed concern over diving near Netrani when whales are around, Ganesh said the sight is good for tourism.
“Yesterday, we found that people were very excited to see it. They were clapping and cheering as the whale sprayed water from their nose. These whales were not seen in Netrani exactly, but on the way to Netrani,” he said.
Professor Haragi said it could have been a pod of one adult and two juveniles.
