18.10.2021 – Synchronously in a duet
October 25, 2021
20.10.2021 – Silk sea
October 27, 2021
East winds aren’t a rarity here in Madeira and they often carry sediment or sand from the African continent with them. The particles are then suspended in the air creating a golden mist around the island. Whilst this phenomenon, known as leste by the locals, gives the island an almost halo-like golden shine, it creates extremely difficult conditions for our spotter to find animals.
Visibility matters when searching for cetaceans out on the ocean so it goes without saying that our team faced massive difficulties finding animals out on the ocean today. Despite the difficult conditions, our spotter managed to find som e beaked whales, likely Blainville’s beaked whales (Mesoplodon densirostris) for our Stenella on this mornings tour and a basking Loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) for our traditional boat. This was an incredible achievement considering the fact that he could not see beyond 3 nautical miles from the coast.
Unfortunately we weren’t as lucky in the afternoon and both boats returned to Calheta without a sighting. The guests, however, realised that the beautiful golden curtain veiling up the coastline was the problem and appreciated our efforts nonetheless.
By Paula Thake
Sightings of the day
Ribeira Brava
10:00 No sighting, Loggerhead turtle
14:30 No sighting
Stenella
09:30 Blainvilles’s beaked whales
15:00 No sighting
