Whales we see 

Orcinus orca

SIZE: Male – 6.3 m, Female – 5.9 m

SEASON – Highest probability of sightings: from March to June

The orca, or killer whale (the name is interchangeable) is the ocean’s apex predator and the largest member of the dolphin family. Orcas are highly intelligent, highly social animals with complex vocalisations and behaviours. Different populations and ecotypes around the world can have very different diets, vocal repertoires and hunting traditions, with many of these behaviours learned and passed on socially.

In some areas, orcas prey on large whales and even great white sharks. However, orcas in West Iceland mostly feed on fish, predominantly herring. Some of the individuals we see in Iceland also travel to Scotland for part of the year, where they have been documented feeding on seals and other marine mammals. North Atlantic killer whales do not fit neatly into the “resident” and “transient” groupings described for killer whales in the Pacific Northwest.

Orcas are toothed whales and belong to the dolphin family (Delphinidae). They live in stable, closely connected family groups, or matrilines, centred around related females. In many populations, sons can remain associated with their mothers throughout their lives. Adult males are easily recognised by their enormous dorsal fins, which can reach around 2 metres in height. The dorsal fin, together with the distinctive grey saddle patch and other markings, allows researchers to identify individual orcas and follow them over time.

This is where photo-identification (photo-ID) becomes particularly valuable. By documenting individual whales and their family groups, researchers can learn more about their movements, social structure, feeding habits and long-term population patterns. At Láki Tours, we support the ongoing Icelandic orca photo-ID and research work carried out by Orca Guardians Iceland, a non-profit conservation organisation we closely collaborate with. This identification work contributes to long-term monitoring and conservation of Icelandic orcas.

Láki Tours is the only whale watching company in Iceland to encounter orcas regularly. They are present from winter to early summer, when the herring is in the fjord. The best time to try and see them is between March and June (with statistically highest chances in April and May), when we see them on the majority of tours, but of course not every day. 

Megaptera novaeangliae

SIZE: Male 11-15 m, Female 12-16 m

SEASON – Highest probability of sightings: mid-February to April, July to September

The humpback whale is one of the most popular species to encounter on a whale watching tour, and for good reason. Humpbacks are particularly well known for their spectacular surface activity, including breaching, pec-slapping, spy-hopping, lob-tailing and tail throws.

Humpback whales come to Iceland to feed. They are baleen whales, also known as filter feeders, using the plates in their mouths to filter small fish and plankton from the water. In Icelandic waters, they feed on species such as krill, herring, mackerel, sand eels and capelin.

During the winter, many humpback whales migrate to warmer waters to mate and give birth. They feed very little while in their breeding grounds, relying largely on the energy reserves built up during the feeding season. Females invest a great deal of energy in raising their calves before returning north to their feeding grounds.

Humpback whales are also famous for their complex social behaviour and culture. Males produce long, intricate songs, particularly on their breeding grounds. All the males in a population tend to sing a similar song, which gradually changes over time as whales learn and copy elements from one another. We still do not fully understand why humpbacks sing, although their songs appear to play an important role in their social lives. Males may also compete with one another for access to females.

Their feeding behaviour is equally fascinating. Humpbacks are known for their sophisticated feeding techniques, including bubble-net feeding, where they blow bubbles around a school of fish to concentrate their prey before feeding. This behaviour is not commonly observed in Iceland, but the sightings appear to be increasing. You can see one of our tours where we were lucky enough to record this behaviour here.

At Láki Tours, we see humpback whales mostly during the summer and into early autumn. In recent years, however, we have also encountered them during the spring months, showing how their seasonal presence can vary from year to year.

Physeter macrocephalus

SIZE: Male- 14-16.5m, Female- 10.5-12m (though females not seen off Iceland)

The sperm whale is the largest toothed whale and considered the largest predator in the ocean. There are many amazing facts about sperm whales: their ability to dive to great depths of over 2,000 metres, hold their breath for up to two hours, and their enormous brains. They are also the only whale species known to have wrinkled skin, although the reason for this is still a mystery.

There is a large difference in size (sexual dimorphism) between male and female sperm whales, with males growing up to 40% larger than females. Sperm whales are found throughout much of the world’s oceans, but they are not commonly seen from whale watching boats because they live in very deep water, which is often too far offshore for regular whale watching.

Sperm whales also have a fascinating social culture. Females live together in close-knit family groups throughout their lives. They produce powerful clicking sounds inside the huge organ that makes up much of their head. These clicks are used for echolocation when hunting at depth, but they also form patterns known as codas. Codas are sequences of clicks that are unique to different family groups and clans. Two clans can live in the same area but rarely socialise, generally associating with other groups that share the same coda patterns.

Male sperm whales begin life in warmer waters with their mothers and family groups. At around 8 years of age, young males leave their mothers and may travel with other juvenile males. They head towards colder waters, where food is more abundant, and continue feeding and growing until they reach sexual maturity at around 20 years of age. Adult males may then move between warmer waters, where they encounter females, and colder feeding grounds.

Sperm whales were once heavily hunted for spermaceti, the valuable waxy oil found in their enormous heads, which was used for candles, lamps and lubricants. Their global population is estimated to have fallen from around 1.95 million before large-scale whaling to about 845,000 today. Although populations have been recovering since commercial whaling largely ended, sperm whales remain classified as vulnerable globally and continue to face threats such as fishing gear, ship strikes and underwater noise.

In Breiðafjörður, we mainly encounter male sperm whales, often bachelor males. They can be found in the deeper parts of the fjord, particularly during spring and early summer. Láki Tours is the only whale watching operator in Iceland that regularly encounters sperm whales.

Balaenoptera acutorostrata

SIZE: Male- 7.5-8.5m, Female- 8.5-9.5m

The minke whale is one of the smallest species of baleen, or filter-feeding, whale and can be found all around Iceland.

Generally solitary, minke whales come to Icelandic waters to feed before travelling south to warmer waters in winter, where they are believed to breed. We still know relatively little about their lives, and exactly where they spend the winter remains unclear. Calves are also rarely seen.

Minke whales feed on schooling fish such as herring and mackerel, as well as plankton and krill.

Minke whales can be elusive and difficult to watch. They are fast and streamlined, often surfacing quickly before disappearing again. However, like many other whales, they can sometimes become curious around boats.

Minke whales can be encountered in Breiðafjörður throughout the year, although their presence and behaviour can vary between seasons.

Minke whaling is still legal in Iceland, although no minke whales have been hunted here in recent years. We ask our guests not to eat minke whale meat or visit restaurants that serve it while visiting Iceland. Most minke whale meat served to tourists is imported from Norway, and choosing not to eat it helps reduce demand for an industry that continues to target these animals. Meet us, don’t eat us.

Balaenoptera musculus

SIZE: Male- 23-26m, Female- 24-27m

Blue whales are the largest animals known to have ever lived on Earth. Although they no longer reach the enormous sizes recorded before commercial whaling, blue whales in the North Atlantic can still reach around 25–26 metres in length.

The largest blue whales once lived in the Southern Ocean around Antarctica, but they were heavily hunted during the industrial whaling era, and their populations remain very low. Blue whales are still considered an endangered species globally and are critically endangered in the Antarctic. Current estimates suggest that around 5,000–15,000 mature blue whales remain worldwide, compared with an estimated population of more than 300,000 before commercial whaling.

Like other baleen whales, blue whales migrate to warmer waters in winter, where they are believed to breed. Their exact breeding grounds remain largely unknown.

Blue whales are also unusual among whales in that they do not always raise their tail flukes when diving, making their dives look quite different from those of some other whale species.

With only a few thousand blue whales estimated to remain in the North Atlantic, encountering one is always a special experience. They are rarely seen on our whale watching tours from Ólafsvík, but they can appear in the area. We have recorded blue whale sightings twice in 2026.

Blue whales feed mainly on krill. When large concentrations of krill occur, blue whales may sometimes appear in the area to take advantage of this abundant food source. These feeding opportunities are difficult to predict, and we never know when blue whales might pass through.

While Ólafsvík was historically known as an important area for blue whale sightings, their presence has changed over time and they are no longer considered a regular sighting. Changes in their distribution may be linked to shifts in food availability and broader changes in the marine environment.

Balaenoptera physalus

SIZE: Male- 18-22m, Female- 20-23m

The fin whale is the second-largest animal on Earth, after the blue whale, and was once nicknamed the “greyhound of the sea” because of its remarkable speed and beautifully streamlined body. Like other baleen whales, fin whales are filter feeders, using their baleen plates to strain food from the water.

Fin whales are found throughout Icelandic waters, but they generally spend much of their time further offshore and in deeper water, making them less common to encounter on whale watching tours. They have nevertheless been documented in Breiðafjörður, including from our tours in Ólafsvík in the past few years. They feed mainly on small schooling fish and plankton, and they may come closer to shore when large concentrations of capelin gather in Icelandic waters during spring.

Like many baleen whales, fin whales migrate between feeding grounds and warmer waters, where they breed and give birth. Their seasonal movements can vary, and there is still much to learn about their behaviour and migration patterns.

Fin whales have a long and difficult history with commercial whaling. Their size, speed and large amounts of oil and meat made them a major target when modern whaling technology made it possible to hunt fast-swimming whales on an industrial scale. Iceland resumed commercial whaling in 2006 after the international moratorium on commercial whaling came into effect in 1986. After no whales were hunted in Iceland in 2024 or 2025, commercial fin whaling resumed again in 2026. The quota this year was 150 fin whales, and 93 individuals had been caught by the end of the season.

Fin whales are currently classified as vulnerable globally. Iceland’s government has announced plans to submit legislation in February 2027 that could permanently ban commercial whaling, meaning the future of the hunt in Iceland is currently under discussion.

If you are visiting Iceland, please consider not eating whale meat and choosing restaurants that do not serve it. Organisations such as IFAW and Hvalavinir run the Meet Us, Don’t Eat Us and For the Love of Iceland campaigns, which encourage visitors to support whale-friendly tourism instead and you can also support them.

Balaenoptera borealis

SIZE: Male- 12-15m, Female- 13-16m

Very similar to the fin whale, the sei whale is one of the least-studied baleen whale species. It is the third-largest whale species, smaller and more slender than the fin whale, with a taller, more curved dorsal fin. Like other baleen whales, sei whales feed by filtering small prey through their baleen plates, including plankton, krill and small schooling fish.

Sei whales are mainly found offshore and their seasonal movements can be unpredictable, so they are relatively rare visitors to the fjords around Iceland. They have nevertheless been encountered several times on our tours in Breiðafjörður. Their presence can vary considerably from year to year, and there is still much we do not know about their distribution and behaviour.

Sei whales have a long history of being hunted by commercial whalers. Once blue and fin whale populations had declined and whalers developed motor boats and exploding harpoons, whaling fleets increasingly targeted sei whales, and their global population was heavily reduced during the 20th century. Commercial hunting largely ended by the late 20th century, and the species is now classified as Endangered by the IUCN.

Globicephala melas

SIZE: Male- 4-6.7 m, Female- 3.8-5.7 m

Long-finned pilot whales are a species of toothed whale, closely related to orcas. Like orcas, they live in quite stable family groups that are led by an adult female, or matriarch. The average group size is around 11–14 individuals, but long-finned pilot whales are very social and can often be seen in groups numbering hundreds of individuals. These larger groups are made up of many families travelling together.

Males are larger than females, like in many toothed whale species, and have a very rounded dorsal fin. Long-finned pilot whales can dive deeply and feed on squid and deep-living fish. In Iceland, they are probably feeding on mackerel and possibly cod at depth, although we are not completely sure.

Like orcas, female long-finned pilot whales are known to go through menopause and live complex, highly social lives, passing on important knowledge and information to younger generations within the group. They can be very curious, and we could often turn off the engines and simply drift, surrounded by whales that would spy-hop, blow bubbles and sometimes squeak at us right next to the boat.

Long-finned pilot whales were a very regular sighting for many years off Ólafsvík in late summer and autumn, when groups of hundreds were a frequent and spectacular sight. In the last couple of years, sightings have declined, and we are not sure why.

Long-finned pilot whales are sadly still hunted in the North Atlantic, particularly in the Faroe Islands (drive hunt known as grindadráp), and it is not clear whether these could include individuals that we sometimes encounter off the west coast of Iceland.

Lagenorhynchus albirostris

SIZE: 2.4 – 3.1m

The white-beaked dolphin is one of the main dolphin species regularly seen around Iceland. Its thick-set, robust body with a substantial layer of blubber is well-suited to life in the North Atlantic, and white-beaked dolphins generally prefer water temperatures below 15°C.

Despite their name, not all white-beaked dolphins actually have a white beak. In fact, one study of adult dolphins found that only around 7% had completely white beaks. Their beaks can range from white to mottled or dark grey, particularly as they get older.

White-beaked dolphins can be encountered throughout the year in Iceland, in groups ranging from just two or three individuals to hundreds. In Breiðafjörður, they are often associated with long-finned pilot whales and can sometimes be seen travelling alongside them.

These dolphins can be incredibly active, sometimes leaping repeatedly high out of the water. They are also known for riding the bow wave of boats, sometimes delighting us by taking turns at the front of the boat as they are carried along by the wave we create. They may also surf the waves behind the boat, making for some unforgettable encounters.

White-beaked dolphins feed on a variety of fish, including cod, haddock and capelin.

Like other toothed whales, white-beaked dolphins are highly social and live in groups. They can mate and breed throughout the year, and we may encounter them at any time during the season on our whale watching tours, and sometimes on our puffin tours as well.

Phocoena phocoena

SIZE: Male- 1.2-1.8m, Female- 1.5-1.9m

The shy and small harbour porpoise is probably much more common around us than we actually realise. They tend to avoid boats and, due to their small size, can usually only be spotted when the sea is very calm.

Porpoises are distinct from dolphins and have different-shaped teeth: their teeth are small and spade-shaped, rather than the conical teeth found in dolphins. There are only seven species of porpoise found around the world, and the harbour porpoise is the only porpoise species found in the North Atlantic.

Porpoises include the rarest of all cetaceans, the vaquita, which is critically endangered and has only around 10 individuals remaining. Porpoises often live close to shore and are particularly vulnerable to becoming entangled in fishing gear and dying in nets. This is considered one of the greatest threats to harbour porpoises around Iceland.

Hyperoodon ampullatus

SIZE: Male- 7.5-9m, Female- 7-8.5m

The northern bottlenose whale is a very rare sight, but it has been spotted from our whale watching boat in Ólafsvík.

Little is known about this species around Iceland, and they are also among the whales that can be prone to stranding. Northern bottlenose whales belong to the beaked whale family, which includes some of the least-known and least-studied whales in the world. For some species, we know very little about them beyond what has been learned from stranded or deceased individuals.

Northern bottlenose whales are deep-diving predators that feed mainly on deep-living fish and squid. As toothed whales, they are also highly social and live in family groups, travelling and feeding together.

They tend to be elusive around boats and are rarely encountered at the surface. One northern bottlenose whale became particularly famous when it swam up the River Thames in London, attracting huge attention from the public and media.

Fratercula arctica

Size: 26 to 29 cm in length

We are aware that puffins are not whales, but since puffins can be seen on our puffin tours, and also on our whale watching tours, we have added them with this beautiful illustration by Dawid Kilon.

Atlantic puffins spend the winter far out in the North Atlantic, living at sea and feeding through the colder months. Around May, they begin returning to Iceland and gathering near their breeding colonies. Spring is a busy time for puffins as they reunite with their partners, prepare their nesting sites and begin the breeding season. Puffins are remarkably loyal to their breeding grounds and often return to the same place year after year. They usually raise just one puffling each season. Although puffins generally form long-term pairs, they do not necessarily spend the winter together. They meet again at the breeding colony when spring arrives. Raising a puffling is a demanding job. The chick needs to be fed enough during its short time in the nest before it is ready to leave. One important factor is the availability of food close to breeding colonies, which can make it harder for adult puffins to raise a healthy chick.

One of the most recognisable sights during the breeding season is a puffin returning with a beak full of fish. Their beaks have special backward-facing structures that help them hold several small fish at once, allowing them to carry food back to their chick. Some puffins have been recorded carrying more than a dozen fish in a single trip! Puffins are also excellent underwater hunters. They use their wings to effectively “fly” underwater while chasing small fish, and can dive to depths of up to 60 metres in search of food! Watching them disappear beneath the surface and reappear with a mouthful of fish is one of the highlights of the breeding season.

And that colourful beak? It is largely a breeding-season look. During the winter, puffins lose much of the bright colour in their beak and facial markings, becoming much duller and more grey. As spring arrives and the breeding season begins, their striking orange, blue and yellow colours return — almost as if they are dressing up for summer.

Atlantic puffins are facing increasing pressures in parts of their range, and their populations have declined in several areas. We believe that enjoying puffins in their natural environment should go hand in hand with protecting them. For this reason, we ask our guests not to support puffin hunting by eating puffin meat while in Iceland. Puffins are a vulnerable species, and we would like to see greater protection for these remarkable birds and an end to puffin hunting in Iceland.