Orca

Male orca

Comparative size of human to orca or killer whale

Excitement one day last week at sea in the Minches when a colossal black triangular fin was spotted off the port beam of Provident. It was an orca, circling lazily but purposively in the water. The fin was so large, so black and so regular in outline that to begin with we all wondered if it was some manmade bit of flotsam but no, there was no doubt as we watched - this belonged to something very big and very alive, probably feeding on a shoal of fish. Gannets continued to plummet like stones into the sea around it, presumably confident that they are not tasty enough to be a starter. Other wildlife we spotted included an otter in the bay where we anchored at Vatersay and several endearing harbour seals, particularly one at Barra that genuinely appeared to be seeking eye contact, and another that followed us out of our last anchorage on Thursday, Loch Kentra. We also saw herons, cormorants and other sea birds