"Over 200 Southern Resident Killer Whales Traveling in a Pod"... First Sighting in Korea

National Park 公, Discovered on Geomundo Island in Dadohaehaesang Park
International Protected Species... "Proof of Excellent Marine Ecosystem"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] Recently, a group of about 200 false killer whales was spotted moving together near Geomundo Island in the South Sea.

The Korea National Park Service announced on the 6th that on the 19th of last month, during a marine ecosystem survey around Geomundo Island in Dadohaehaesang National Park, they captured footage of a group of about 200 false killer whales moving together.

The video shows approximately 200 false killer whales, including an adult estimated to be 4 meters long and calves about 1 meter in length, moving westward from Geomundo Island at a speed of about 2 km/h.

In Korea, false killer whales have been found as carcasses in Jeju and Busan or spotted in groups of about ten along the deep waters of the East Sea coast. However, this is the first time a group of false killer whales has been observed along the South Sea coast.

An official from the Park Service stated, "Geomundo Island within Dadohaehaesang National Park is an area with an excellent marine ecosystem, inhabited by seaweeds and corals. It is presumed that the whales followed prey such as finless porpoises, horse mackerels, and amberjacks, which are among their food sources."

False killer whales belong to the dolphin family and resemble orcas in appearance and size, which is why they are also called 'beomgorae-buchi' (literally 'little orca'). They are internationally protected species classified as Data Deficient on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.

They are distributed worldwide in temperate and tropical offshore waters, but their ecological characteristics are largely unknown. They usually travel in groups of 10 to 60, but sometimes larger groups have been reported. There have been no recorded cases of attacks on humans in the wild.

They generally prefer deep waters and are mainly observed in Korea when the water temperature is above 17°C. On the day of filming, August 19, the water temperature was 24°C.

The research team explained that since a group of orcas was found near Yeoseodo Island in 2016, the discovery of a large group of false killer whales indirectly indicates the excellent marine ecosystem in this area.

Choi Seung-woon, director of the National Park Research Institute, said, "False killer whales are very difficult to see in Korea, so their appearance along the coast of Geomundo, a park area, is a very meaningful phenomenon. We will do our best for scientific investigation, research, and systematic conservation in the future."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.