According to local authorities and residents, whale sightings were quite rare in previous years. However, in 2023, whale pods have been continuously appearing in this maritime area.
On December 14, patrol officers from the Cô Tô Border Guard Post (Quang Ninh Border Guard) captured footage of a pod of whales swimming off the southeast coast of Cô Tô Island, approximately 6 nautical miles from shore.
A pod of whales swimming off the southeast coast of Cô Tô Island.
The 35-second clip shows three whales, each nearly 20 meters long, surfacing and opening their mouths wide to feed.
Previously, a pod of three whales was also spotted near Mouse Tail Island, close to Cô Tô Con and on the way to Tran Island.
It is reported that whales have been consistently appearing in the Cô Tô sea area over the past four months. Specifically, in July 2023, a pod of 4-5 whales frequently appeared in the region from Ha Mai to Dau Trau. By the end of September 2023, whales were again feeding for an hour around Cô Tô Island.
Experts from the Oceanography Institute stated that the continuous appearance of whales in the Cô Tô area for feeding is a positive sign indicating that the marine environment here is clean and healthy.
