Orcas spotted close to shore at Auckland’s Long Bay beach

Detailed summary

Hundreds of Kiwis flocked to a popular North Shore beach as a pod of orcas swam in the shallows this afternoon. Onlooker Sonia Hopping told the Herald she saw the pod of about six…

Hundreds of Kiwis flocked to a popular North Shore beach as a pod of orcas swam in the shallows this afternoon.

Onlooker Sonia Hopping told the Herald she saw the pod of about six whales, thought to be orcas, about 2.30pm at Long Bay Regional Park.

“They were super close to the shore. There was like heaps and heaps of people looking at them,” Hopping said.

She said the orcas were at hip height in the water. People who were swimming on the sunny 21C Auckland afternoon managed to get quite close to them.

She estimated a “couple of hundred” people were at the shoreline taking photos.

The Auckland resident said she felt lucky to have seen the whales because they were only visible for about three minutes.

Others took to social media to warn people to stay a safe distance away from the calves as they made their way around the coast.

This sighting comes weeks after a pod of orcas thrilled Aucklanders in the city centre.

Members of the Facebook group Whale and Dolphin Watch New Zealand – Cetacean Spotting NZ reported sightings across the harbour on October 26.

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