Scores of onlookers crowded around and cheered lifeguards on as they recovered the small whale, no more than two metres in length, and used a large beach towel to carry it up the beach.
The lifeguards used a jet-ski to release the small whale in deeper waters in Patong Bay, and are keeping watch in case it returns.
The melon-headed whale (Peponocephala electra) is also known less commonly as the electra dolphin, little killer whale, or many-toothed blackfish.
The small marine mammal is a toothed whale of the oceanic dolphin family. The common name is derived from the distinguishable head shape.
A protected marine animal in Thailand, the melon-headed whale is rarely found in Phuket. One was last reported being spotted in local waters on June 10, 2021.
Melon-headed whales are more commonly found in Chonburi and Songkhla provinces, where there too there are reported when found stranded on beaches.