A "MYSTERY pod" of killer whales from Scotland has been spotted off the coast of Norway.
The discovery solves a three-year enigma after the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust (HWDT) made the last known sighting of the pod – never before seen in Scottish waters – off Vatersay on Scotland’s west coast in June 2018.
The breakthrough came on July 10 after citizen scientist Asmund Aasheim photographed a pod of six whales in Boroyfjorden in southern Norway and sent his pictures to the Norwegian Orca Survey. Dr Eve Jourdain found that the killer whales were not familiar from Norwegian records.
Dr Jourdain looked further afield after she found the colouration on the whales' backs, known as a saddle patch, looked different to that of killer whales normally seen around Norway. She found a match in the Scottish Killer Whale Catalogue – a document containing images of all known living killer whales seen in Scottish waters.
She said: “From the moment I first took a look at Asmud’s photos, I knew these killer whales were “different” from our Norwegian killer whales.
“Following our routine protocols, I tried to identify them from our Norwegian Catalogue anyway, but as expected, I found no match.
"When it came to mind that I should browse through the Scottish Catalogue, I had a strong feeling that I would find them there. And, bingo! It was incredible to find this first photographic match between Norway and Scotland!"
READ MORE: Bumper year for whale and dolphin sightings across Scotland
Researchers at the HWDT and the authors of the Scottish Killer Whale Catalogue confirmed that three of the killer whales in the Norwegian encounter were specific individuals known from the Scottish Catalogue.
The only previous confirmed sighting of this killer whale pod had been made by the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust in 2018, when the animals were spotted just 300 metres away from the charity’s research yacht, Silurian.
HWDT’s science officer Becky Dudley was on board and captured the photographs that – three years later – made the Norwegian match possible.
“The encounter with this group of killer whales back in 2018 was one of the most amazing experiences I’ve had on Scotland’s west coast," she said.
"It was made even more exciting when – despite much investigation and collaboration with other organisations – the identity of this pod remained a mystery.
"I am thrilled that the group has been matched to the group seen in Norway over three years later. It highlights how much there is to learn about the marine life in our oceans.”
Dr Lauren Hartny-Mills, Science and Conservation Manager at the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust said: “This latest sighting really highlights how crucial citizen science is to help us monitor the movements of highly mobile and wide-ranging animals such as whales and dolphins, and demonstrates the need for long-term monitoring.
“We still have so much to learn about whale movements, and it’s fascinating to be able to add another important piece to the puzzle. Through working with citizen scientists and by collaborating with colleagues from Scotland, Norway and beyond, we really hope to learn more about this group.”
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