Oh, what exciting news!
A group of 14 divers spotted a pod of orcas (aka killer whales) in the tropical waters near Sipadan Island, off the east coast of Sabah. The sighting of the extraordinary event is believed to be the first in Malaysian waters.
According to NST, the killer whales were spotted at roughly 11am last Sunday (15th January). Malaysian diver Faridzul Adzli Mad Adim said that the boatman signalled the group to get off of the water so that they can move to the open sea.
“We were wondering what had happened when he told us that he just saw an orca jumped out of the water,” Faridzul told the publication. “And then we saw the killer whales and they were jumping out of the water about 5 metres away from us. Everyone shouted excitedly and we were in awe,” he continued.
He also added that there could have been 8 orcas at that time and that the sea’s temperature was about 25°C.
Watch:
Orcas (Orcinus orca) are toothed whales and it is the largest member in the oceanic dolphin family. The marine mammals are considered a cosmopolitan species and can be found in each of the world’s oceans in a variety of marine environments, from Arctic and Antarctic regions to tropical seas.
Sources: NST, Wikipedia / Featured image: YouTube screenshot.
