Sea creatures make ‘extremely rare' appearance off England. See ‘magical' photos
The apex predators were seen off the Isles of Scilly — an archipelago southwest of Cornwall, England — in early July.
Images taken by wildlife photographer Isaac Ogden show the creatures breaching the surface near the rocky coastline.
'Killer whales, killer views,' Ogden wrote in a July 10 Instagram post, which garnered hundreds of likes. He also noted the rarity of the encounter.
'Orcas have been seen a couple of times in recent years off mainland Cornwall but not off the Isles within the last 25 years or so,' Ogden told McClatchy News.
The Kernow Weather Team, a local weather organization, described the sighting as 'extremely rare' and 'magical.'
'These intelligent, powerful creatures are truly a sight to behold and a reminder of how wild and wonderful our Cornish seas really are,' the organization said in a Facebook post.
One of the animals was identified as Freyja, or C-002, an Iberian orca belonging to the Vega pod.
Freyja is believed to be the first Iberian killer whale to have been seen in the waters off Cornwall, according to the Cornwall Wildlife Trust.
'She is a female and she is always seen with this other one, although we need to get further identification on the second whale, we think she may be C001,' Dolphin Zones' Sarah Matthews, told the BBC.
'They are quite an elusive pair that appears to pop up randomly in different places,' she said, noting the pair may be the last surviving members of their ecotype.
Orcas are found throughout all of the world's oceans, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Globally, there are an estimated 50,000 individuals belonging to various distinct populations.
The creatures face threats from vessel strikes, entanglements in fishing gear and food shortages.
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