False Killer Whales Spotted in the South
calendar_monthMay 02, 2013
On April 13, 2013 we received news from Emperor Divers in the south that they had spotted a pod of false killer whales. The pod was seen between Marsa Shouna and Marsa Mubarak, slightly offshore as the guests were returning from an Elphinstone day trip. The pod stayed close to the boat for around 10 minutes just bow riding and playing. Some of the larger ones were estimated to be between 3-4 meters in length. False killer whales are known to inhabit the Red Sea, but are definitely a rare encounter. The false killer whale is black with a grey throat and neck. It has a slender body with an elongated tapered head. The dorsal fin is sickle-shaped and its flippers are narrow, short and pointed. The average size is around 4.9 m (16 ft). Females can reach a maximum known size 5.1 m (17 ft) in length and weigh 1,200 kg (2,600 lb), while the largest males can reach 6.1 m (20 ft) and weigh as much as 2,200 kg (4,900 lb). The false killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens) is a cetacean, and the third largest member of the oceanic dolphin family (Delphinidae). It lives in temperate and tropical waters throughout the world.
