People traveled across the country to catch a glimpse of the first killer whale seen in the Netherlands in over 60 years.

Today I saw a killer whale for the first time, and it was in the last place where I would have expected it: the Wadden Sea, the Netherlands!

The last time a live one had been seen in the Netherlands was reportedly in 1947, and the last stranded one, save a subfossil skull, was found already dead in 1963, so this was certainly a special event. When the report came in, I rushed over together with Paul and several others, to find the juvenile female still swimming around, albeit in very shallow water.

Word is she was very weak and about to strand herself earlier today. Apparently a boat from the Ducth ministry of LNV spotted her and tried to coax her back to deeper waters. Eventually a group from the Dolfinarium arrived to catch her. The photo above shows a group of whale spotters watching as they hoist her aboard after a brief chase by zodiac.

I’m sure this will bring good publicity for the Dolfinarium, so I hope they’re acting in the best interest of the whale.

What an amazing day!