WATCH: At least four orcas seen swimming around Victoria’s Inner Harbour on Thursday afternoon.

There has been a rare sighting at Victoria’s Inner Harbour.

“I’ve been on the Island for 27 years and I’ve never seen them that close,” said one witness.

At least four transient orcas swam into the Inner Harbour on Thursday afternoon at around 2:30 p.m.

“You saw the big fins and probably half [of their bodies] out of the water. It was really wonderful,” said one tourist from Washington.

“They literally all popped up in front of me,” said whale watcher Jackie Cowan.

Cowan, who lives on a boat in the harbour, was on her day off when she heard the call of orcas on her radio.

“This was like, a moment in time that was so rare and I was there capturing it,” Cowan said.

Orcas, killer whales, are marked black-and-white dolphins. According to the Vancouver Aquarium, there are three distinct groups, residents, Bigg’s (transients) and offshores. Each group has major differences in behaviour and social organization, and subtle differences in appearance, such as the dorsal fin and saddle patch.

Resident killer whales are common on the coast from April to November, but some pods can be seen in inshore waters throughout the years. Some may go offshore or into mainland inlets during the winter. In the summer months, southern resident pods are seen in Haro Strait and the San Juan Islands, while the northern residents are often seen in the Johnstone Strait area.

Bigg’s killer whales are found along the B.C. coast year-round and are always on the move as they look for prey. They are often seen in areas where seals are abundant.

A Bigg?s pod may travel up to 1,500 kilometres along the coast from Alaska to California while resident pods have been known to travel up to 2,200 km. There are approximately 300 northern and southern residents and 225 transients in B.C./Washington waters.

CHEK Newsletter

Sign up for the CHEK Now daily email newsletter to get breaking news and the day's top stories sent to your email.

Email Address

Sign Me Up

Here are some of the photos and videos of the beautiful sighting. If you have any photos or videos of the orcas in Victoria, send them to [email protected].

Sorry for not answering the phones – we were busy watching the Orcas in the inner harbour from our patio! #yyj @CitifiedYYJ @VibrantVictoria pic.twitter.com/0oStjHD3B1

— RJC Victoria (@RJC_Victoria) June 7, 2018

Spotted from our windows this afternoon, a pod of orcas in the inner harbour! You never know what you will see from our windows. #natureismagic #robertbateman #natureforall pic.twitter.com/UWLucvuBf8

— Robert Bateman (@batemancentre) June 7, 2018

WATCH: Orcas swim around Victoria’s Inner Harbour. Video Credit: Justin Foran.

Editorial Policies Report an Error