Beluga Whales Spotted in Narragansett Bay

David DeSalvo and Matthew King were out working off the east side of Jamestown this weekend when they saw something remarkable: a group of beluga whales breaching.

DeSalvo had the presence of mind to grab his camera and get some footage of the whales, which are not usually seen in local waters.

In the video, both DeSalvo and King laugh in surprise as two whales crest the surface. A third whale can be seen lurking about 50 to 100 yards away.

The two work at The Marina at RI Mooring in North Kingstown, so they’re familiar with the aquatic life that resides in Narragansett Bay. The pair speculated that the whales were drawn to the Rhode Island coast due to a large amount of menhaden in the bay.

Both said they couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

It’s not the first time that belugas have been seen in the bay.

Last year, Dale Denelle of South Kingstown spotted one while fishing in the West Passage. At first, he thought it was a great white shark and began to get scared.

“First it came under the boat and scared the crap out of me,” he said. “I thought it was my mind playing tricks on me.”

He, too, whipped out his camera and captured video of the encounter.

Belugas are commonly found in cold waters, such as in the Arctic and rarely are seen south of Canada.

Last year’s encounter is considered the first-ever recorded sighting of a beluga whale in Rhode Island.

Beluga whales are unique in that they don’t have a dorsal fin and molt their skin.

They typically can grow to nearly 20-feet in length and weigh two tons.

Photo Courtesy: David DeSalvo

WATCH DeSavlo’s encounter below: