Orca
Orcinus orca
Transient "Bigg's" orcas occasionally pass through SoCal hunting common dolphins. Sightings are rare but unforgettable.
Scale
Shorter than a single school bus — about 69% of its length.
A orca runs about 27 ft. Lined up against a school bus everyone already has a mental ruler for, each one 39.3 ft per the manufacturer's own spec sheet.
School bus: 39.3 ft (472 in), Blue Bird Vision 72-passenger conventional bus, manufacturer spec sheet.
Drawn to the same scale. 27 ÷ 39.3 ≈ 0.7.
Stats
At a glance
LENGTH
Up to 32 ft
WEIGHT
Up to ~11 tons
LIFESPAN
30–90 yrs (avg. ~30 males, ~50 females in the wild)
DIET
Marine mammals and squid (this ecotype)
RARITY
Rare — a handful of days a year, no reliable season
SEASON
Sporadic
Length/weight/lifespan/diet: NOAA Fisheries species page →
How to ID
What to look for
Black & white, tall dorsal fin. Transient pods follow dolphins.
BEHAVIORS TO WATCH FOR
When
Best months to see
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
NOV
DEC
Archive
Last 30 days
This chart includes numerical reports only. Uncounted sightings do not appear in its totals; see the daily archive for presence reports.
Numerically reported
18
Days with counts
3/30 reported days
Last numeric report
Sep 12
DAILY SIGHTING COUNTHOVER A BAR
SEP 17
Book
Where to go (operators publish dated sighting reports)
We monitor public trip reports across Newport Beach, Long Beach, Dana Point and San Diego. Reporting schedules vary; summaries show the latest available report. Newport's shared feed is counted once.
NC
Newport Coastal Adventure
1,100 common dolphins · report 2026-09-17
DW
Dana Wharf
Common dolphin: Present, count unknown · Risso's dolphin: Present, count unknown · report 2026-09-17