Orca Watch Online invites you to view cetaceans from the comfort of your own home

A week-long online programme of events is set to take place to mark the return of Orca Watch from this Saturday.

For the last nine years, the end of May has seen groups of volunteers, tourists, and media travel to north east Scotland for the chance to glimpse one of Britain’s most charismatic and exciting species — the orca.

Organised by Sea Watch Foundation, the annual Orca Watch event usually takes place over ten days across Caithness, Orkney, and Shetland, with everyone welcome to join in the land-watches, boat trips, talks, and camaraderie.

Last year’s event was cancelled but this year, it is back with a difference.

Orca Watch Online, held between May 29 and June 6, will bring the excitement of watching orcas in the UK to the comfort of your living room.

The week-long programme of virtual events, talks, and daily sighting roundups will celebrate Orca Watch week 2021 while keeping the local community, wildlife enthusiasts, and Sea Watch staff safe.

Orca Watch began in 2012, a collaboration between Sea Watch Foundation and their regional coordinator Colin Bird.

The north-east coast of Scotland is a haven for marine mammal and bird life, with orcas, minke and humpback whales, Risso’s, white-beaked, and Atlantic white-sided dolphins, and harbour porpoise all possible to spot from shore. 

Now in its tenth year, rather than welcoming numbers of people to participate directly in land and boat-surveying, this year will instead see a small, dedicated group of locally based volunteers collecting data on the ground in Caithness, Shetland, and Orkney, operating strictly within COVID guidelines.  

More details on Orca Watch 2021 can be found here.