Ocean Ecotour Guide - Ogata
Ogata Town
The Town of Ogata is located approximately 100 kilometres west of Kochi City and has a population of around ten thousand. Whale Watching started here in earnest in August, 1989. We have just arrived here and shortly the leisure fishing boat which we chartered for whale watching will be departing. Ogata also has other attractions apart from whale watching. There is a beautiful coastline, rimmed by a forest of pine trees, along with the quaint Rakkyo(pickling onion) fields, which have an attractive purple blossom when in season. Ogata is also bathed by the Black Tide, which eventually arrives here after it's long journey from South-East Asia, past Taiwan and China. Ogata Town also holds a popular local event called "The Seaside Museum", which runs from spring through to autumn every year. "The Seaside Museum" has several attractions, including a sand sculpture competition, a T-shirt print display and a 6 kilometre Fun Run along Irino beach. It is a very lively time here in Ogata.
The Whale Watching Area in Ogata
The most common species of whale found in the sea around Ogata is the Bryde's Whale. These whales live mainly in shallow waters, and sightings have been recorded in this area for centuries. Whale watching from the shoreline was, and still is, quite a popular pastime. The local fisher folk referred to the Bryde's Whale as the 'Bonito Whale', due to the fact that the whales and the bonito which they were fishing for were often found together. Bryde's Whales in this area are non-migratory, and can be seen all year round. Along with whales, flying fish -- which spring away from the ship's bow, wallowing sunfish and pods of frolicking dolphins are also common sights. The mouth of the Shimanto river, the last, free-flowing river in Japan, is also nearby.
The Whales of Ogata
A Bryde's Whale
Bryde's Whales traveling in mother and calf pairs are regularly sighted off the coast of Ogata, and the curious calves sometimes mistake the whale watching vessels for their mother and come close alongside. The adult whales also show a mischievous side and occasionally it seems as thought the whales are doing a bit of 'people watching' from their ocean viewpoint.
A major attraction of watching Bryde's Whales is their habit of breaching, or leaping bodily out of the water. A project to identify individual whales by their markings began in 1994, and local watchers now have nicknames for many individuals.
Ocean Ecotour - Ogata
last update:july 1, 1996/(C)Kochi Pref.