Rare sighting of killer and beak whales captured during aerial surveys of Irish waters

A KILLER WHALE was observed in Irish waters as part of an aerial survey to deepen understanding of Ireland’s offshore arena and marine life.

Ireland’s marine waters are home to rare species such as the blue whale, and deep-diving beaked whales, as well as more common species such as pilot whales and bottlenose dolphins.

But there was also a rare sighting of a killer whale and beaked whale over three broad-scale surveys over summer 2021 and summer and winter 2021.

The surveys are part of ObSERVE, is a major state-sponsored marine scientific programme that was established in 2014 and aims to improve our knowledge and understanding of protected offshore species and sensitive habitats.

The second phase of ObSERVE aerial projects contains findings from aerial surveys carried out over the course of two years by a team of researchers in University College Cork on key marine species such as cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises) and birds off the south and southwest Irish coast.

These aerial surveys have sampled a large portion of Ireland’s maritime area of almost 490,000km-squared.

These results will help to inform the assessment of risk to protected species, as well as contribute to the sustainable management of Ireland’s maritime area.

The findings are also expected to feed into the sustainable management of offshore activities, including offshore renewable energy projects. 

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Over the three broad-scale surveys (summer 2021 and summer and winter 2022) there were almost 39,400 sightings of seabirds, representing 24 seabird species.

There were also close to 2,200 sightings of 17 species of cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises).

While cetacean sightings included common dolphins, bottlenose dolphins, harbour porpoise and minke whales, there were also rarer sightings of species such as killer whales and beaked whales.

Other species sighted included sunfish, basking sharks, and blue sharks.

There was just one sighting of a killer whale in summer 2021 and three sightings in all of an unidentified large whale over ten metres in length.

The report noted that killer whales sighted in Irish waters likely belong to the population that occupies the waters around the British Isles, North Sea and Iceland.

There was also just one sighting over the three surveys of a Sowerby’s beaked whale and a northern bottlenose whale, as well as five sightings of a false killer whale.

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