Orcas back in the Hebrides after Cornwall sighting

MUCH-LOVED killer whales John Coe and Aquarius have been spotted back in the Hebrides after a long trip to the coast of Cornwall.

The pair were spotted earlier this month near Porthgwarra by Will McEnery-Cartwright from Porthcurno, who described the sighting as a “once in a lifetime event”.

That was on May 5 – nine days later there were seen 550 miles north of that spot by Anthony Rigell from Waternish Point on Skye.

And earlier this week, on May 17, the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust’s research vessel Silurian spotted the two whales off Lochboisdale, South Uist.

The pair of whales are usually spotted around the west coasts of Scotland and Wales, and around Ireland. John Coe has occasionally been seen off the north-east coast of Scotland.

The last confirmed sighting of the pair was reported off Skye in October 2020 – prior to that, John Coe was spotted off the coast of Co. Donegal in August.