05.07.2020 – Social distancing

After a four long months of quarantine, our crew was happy to finally cruise out onto the ocean with guests today in search of our favourite marine inhabitants. After the usual safety briefing our excited (masked) guests boarded the Ribeira Brava and we set off to see what treasures the Atlantic would surprise us with after so much time.

We were lucky to have the calm waters outside Calheta all to ourselves as we approached our first sighting, a small group of Short-beaked common dolphins (Delphinus delphis). These beautiful dolphins are seasonal visitors in the islands waters and usually prefer the cooler waters during the winter but, if food is abundant, they may stick around for a while longer. The small subgroup turned out to be part of a larger dispersed pod that was split up in smaller hunting parties. While some the animals curiously approached the bow of our traditional boat, others were more occupied in competing with a pod of Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) for a bait ball near Madalena do Mar.

It’s hard to compete with Bottlenose dolphins for food since these cetaceans do tend to stick around in Madeira’s waters for some time and know their surroundings very well. Resident Bottlenose groups have long been identified by scientists and these often remain close to their coastal hotspots. The Bottlenose seemed curious about our guests and were more inclined to approach us than they usually during the busy summer months.

Our spotter then informed our crew of a group of Sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) around 3 nautical miles further out so we sped off to see the show. The gentle giants weren’t as eager to approach us as the dolphins were. The group was still relatively dispersed after hunting in the deep and a large animal accompanied a small calf away from our boat as we approached the area. While this sort of “social distancing” may remind of human social behaviour throughout the COVID crisis, this animal was simply avoiding the boat to protect the young calf at her side.

Before encountering the Sperm whales, our captain was also able to carefully approach a large basking Loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta), that caught some of the warm morning sun before diving back into the blue.

We couldn’t be happier to be back on the ocean and are thrilled that the generous Atlantic welcomed us with such beautiful sightings today!

By Paula Thake

Sightings of the day

Ribeira Brava

10:00 Bottlenose dolphins, Short-beaked common dolphins, Sperm whales, Loggerhead turtle