IT MAY be several thousand miles from their more usual habitat in the Arctic seas, but the West Wales coast could be becoming a popular destination for one of the ocean’s most awe-inspiring creatures.
The orca – or killer whale – was spotted off the coast of Pembrokeshire at least twice last year and joins a growing list of more exotic marine animals to be identified off the Welsh coast.
Dolphins in Cardigan Bay are already well documented, with the area known to some as “Dolphin Coast”, while the less common Risso’s dolphin was seen off Strumble Head near Fishguard on New Year’s Day.
Meanwhile, coastguards and marine experts received numerous reports of a 40ft humpback whale off the Swansea coastline in December. Just days later a dead humpback whale was brought ashore at Port Talbot by coastguards. Elsewhere, large groups of basking sharks were spotted off the Cornish coast during an aerial survey in August.
But experts remain unsure as to what the killer whales are doing in Cardigan Bay. The creatures are found in all oceans and most seas, but generally prefer cooler temperate and polar regions and are particularly concentrated in the north-east Pacific Basin.
Terry Leadbetter, of the Welsh Marine Life Rescue, said, “I haven’t got a clue what they are doing here unless they come for the seal pups, which are rich pickings.
“But they are around quite often and I’ve often heard people say they’ve seen them.”
Cliff Benson, of Sea Trust, said, “It is a sign of the rich marine life we have in the area. Orcas have been seen regularly.
“Two years ago we saw a couple not more than a quarter of a mile off the coast of Fishguard and in November last year we had one off Strumble Head.
“There have been sightings off Ramsey Island, near St Davids, and The Smalls [off St Ann’s Head].
“In June a group of six was seen, including a male with a bent fin, from the Fishguard to Rosslare ferry. They are certainly around on an annual basis.
“If you think about it, if you go in a straight line from parts of the Pembrokeshire coast you’ve got 7,000 miles of Atlantic Ocean until you hit South America, but the seas around here are rich.
“We’ve always had a good seal population of around 7,000 who feed on the fish, of which there are so many.
“Orcas come and go as they please, we don’t necessarily know why they are coming here.
“They probably do a bit of a circuit passing through the Irish Sea following food. It may be that some areas in other parts of the world are being over-fished so they are looking further afield.
“We don’t know if they are coming more often but there are certainly more of us looking.
“I suspect they’ve always been here moving through from one place to another.”
Eight years ago several dead seals began turning up on the Pembrokeshire coast, having been severely attacked, but Mr Leadbetter said recent reports of such injuries were down to natural decomposition and not attacks.
And Mr Benson said there was no evidence of orca attacks on seals or dolphins in the area.
“They have a ferocious reputation but there is no report of a human being attacked in the wild by an orca worldwide,” said Mr Benson.
Source:ic Wales, United Kingdom
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