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A pod of killer whales is swimming off the coast of Scotland - and local photographer Karen Munro caught them on camera.

Karen, 38, first spotted the group of 10 whales near John O’Groats.

They are currently located between Mey and the Duncansby Stacks in Caithness.

(Image: SWNS)

The whale-watching enthusiast said: “I first saw them up at John O’Groats and went up to Duncansby Head to get ahead of them to get a better view.

“There was about 10 of them in total and they were definitely hunting seals from how they were behaving.

“They don’t normally come in that close to the shore for anything else, and although we didn’t see any seals, from the way they were moving it was how they behave when they are hunting.

“One of them is known as number 19 and she is easily identified by her notched dorsal and scarred saddle patch.

“She’s been seen in Scotland during the summer months for a few years now and has also been spotted in Iceland during the winter.”

(Image: SWNS)

Killer whales, also known as orcas, are regularly seen in the North Sea as they live in both cold and tropical seas.

Males can grow to more than 30ft long and weigh more than 6 tonnes, with females usually smaller than that.

The highly intelligent creatures are regarded as apex predators - meaning they are not hunted by any other animal - and possess excellent eyesight, hearing and sense of touch, while they are capable of travelling at 56 km/h.

But worry not - despite their fearsome reputation, there have been no fatal attacks on humans by wild killer whales.

There have, however, upon handlers by those kept in captivity.

We recently reported how ship traffic was a major risk to their health of orcas as they are forced to 'shout' above the noise of passing vessels.