MURDESHWAR (UTTARA KANNADA): Much to the surprise of marine adventure enthusiasts, arguably for the first time, a pod of orca whales has shown up near Murdeshwar off Netrani, and local tour operators believe that this is good for tourism.
The rare sighting has come two years after a baleen whale was seen near Bhatkal. Though local residents say orca whales have never been sighted either individually or in groups, experts say sightings of this whale in the west coast are an annual affair.
The whales were sighted by tourists and trainers while they were on their way to Netrani for scuba diving.
“There were three whales and they were around the boat for more than half-an-hour,” said Ganesh Harikanthra, who operates a Netrani adventure club.
Dipani Sutaria, Cetacean Biologist, Member, Cetacean Specialist Group, IUCN, however, said it is an annual phenomenon and these whales are sighted every year.
“They are on their migratory route or on movement between Southern Bay of Bengal and Western Arabian Sea. They were sighted in March and early December last year and in October in 2022. They were sighted in southern Maharashtra, Mangaluru, Udupi, Lakshadweep, Minicoy and now near Murudeshwar,” she added.
Shivakumar Haragi, Professor, Department of Marine Biology, Karnataka University, Dharwad, said the whales are moving towards north and have been sighted for the first time near Murdeshwar.
“These whales, also called killer whales, are aggressive. They are primary predators in the sea, consuming over 30 species of marine animals, including turtles, dolphins, seals and sharks. There is no species it needs to be afraid of. But there are no instances of killer whales attacking humans,” he added.
While some tourists expressed concerns over diving near Netrani when the whales are around, Ganesh said this sighting is good for tourism.
“Yesterday, we found that people were quite excited about the sighting. They were clapping and cheering when the whales splashed water through their nostrils. These whales were sighted not exactly at Netrani, but en route to Netrani,” he said.
Prof Haragi said it could be a pod of an adult and two juveniles.