In Pics: False killer dolphins spotted in Hurgada

CAIRO –17 February 2018: A group of 10 false killer dolphins have been recently spotted swimming around the Red Sea waters of Hurgada.

According to Ahmed Ghalab, general manager of the Red Sea Protectorates, the above-mentioned dolphins closely resemble killer whales and usually reach around five meters in length.

Amid a sweeping atmosphere of joy and exhilaration in Hurgada, Ghalab added that the last time the false killer dolphins appeared was in 2012, adding that their first-ever emergence in the Red Sea waters dates back to 1985.


FILE: Three false killer dolphins swimming around the Red Sea waters in Hurgada

He further added that a marine patrol led by environmental researcher Abdullah Abed was able to track the movement of 10 large types of false killer dolphins in the Sheraton area of Hurgada three days ago, describing the event as “a rare occurrence.”

A motorboat carrying tourists that was passing by the site of the dolphins kept blowing its horns in celebration of the emergence of the false killers.

Ghalab added that the false killer dolphins joined the list of marine organisms that have been observed lately in the Red Sea during the past years, including the whale shark, whale humpback and the sunfish.


FILE: False killer dolphins spotted


For his part, Ashraf Abadi, director of the Red Sea Diving Center, said that the emergence of these dolphins demonstrates the success of the governorate to protect the marine environment in the Red Sea and the officials’ adherence to the international conventions for the protection of marine organisms that ensure that they are not harmed or hooked by fishermen and divers and are nurtured to stay in the Red Sea.


Earlier in February, the Red Sea reserves sector stranded a huge marine vessel ashore to prevent the decomposition of the waters.

In 2015, a German tourist was killed after a shark ripped into her leg in a popular resort in the Red Sea city of Sharm El-Sheikh.