14.08.2024 – Paul Alexander the Great

The band the Stranglers once asked, “Whatever happened to all of the heroes?” It seems to be a trend in modern times that public figures are increasingly controversial; it has become difficult to truly support anyone’s work. This is truly an issue in the natural science world. As science and society evolve and change, it is unsurprising that many former heroes hold views that are, rightly, no longer acceptable. In the whale-watching world, there is the obviously controversial species named after people from whaling times. For example, there is an argument to rename the Brydes Whale (Balenoptera edeni) to the “tropical whale,” as it is named after the whaler John Brydes. Georges Cuvier, a man who named/first described all three dolphin species we saw today Atlantic Spotted (Stenella frontalis), Rough Toothed (Steno brendanesis), and Risso’s (Grampus griseus), has a long and uncomfortable history of scientific racism, which should not be ignored no matter his contributions to cetology.

It is therefore today that I, somewhat tentatively, want to call Paul Alexander Zino a hero of mine. Whilst he has done little for the cetaceans, his work in ornithology is second to none. Born in Madeira to English parents, his lifetime of work led to the end of yearly shearwater hunting in the savage islands, the formation of Madeira National Park in 1986, and the separation/protection of Europe’s most endangered seabird (Zinos Petrel (Pterodroma madeira)) from Feas Petrel (Pterodroma feae). Every day I am reminded of Mr. Zinos’ work when enjoying the gliding flight of both petrels and shearwaters on our trips (our 09:30 tour today was fortunate enough to see Feas!). I truly hope in the coming years I am able to keep him as a conservation role model.

By Peter Worth

Sightings of the Day

Ribeira Brava

09:30 – Atlantic Spotted Dolphins, Feas Petrel

17:00 – Risso’s Dolphins, Atlantic Spotted Dolphins

Stenella

09:30 – Atlantic spotted dolphins, Rough-toothed dolphins, Loggerhead sea turtles

14:00 – Risso’s dolphins, Loggerhead sea turtle

17:00 – Risso’s dolphins, Rough-toothed dolphins