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Well-known orca ‘Old Thom’ spotted again in Mass. waters
Unlike most other orcas, the massive male known as "Old Thom" prefers to swim alone.
Video courtesy Donna Piraino.
Although orcas, or killer whales, are found in every ocean around the world, only one is known to frequent the waters off Massachusetts. That animal, a solitary male known as “Old Thom” reappeared north of Cape Cod Sunday afternoon.
Donna Piraino, who helps run Go Girl Fish Fishing Charters, saw “Old Thom” firsthand as she was looking for tuna near Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. Piraino was drawn to the sight of a pod of dolphins when one much larger dorsal fin appeared above the waves.
Piraino captured the moment on video and posted it to Facebook. The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy reposted her video and confirmed that the orca was indeed “Old Thom.”
Video courtesy Donna Piraino.
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“Old Thom” has been spotted in waters around Cape Cod numerous times before, including in 2016, 2022, 2023, and 2024. He first got onto the radar of researchers with the New England Aquarium in 2015, when they found him swimming in the Bay of Fundy between Maine and New Brunswick.
“Old Thom” has a massive dorsal fin with a distinct in-cut and is believed to be more than 25-feet long. Orcas are highly social animals, and usually live in pods. But “Old Thom” is an anomaly, usually found swimming alone or beside dolphins. Orcas are actually dolphins themselves, the largest members of the Delphinidae family.
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