23.11.2021 – Single bar

Published by Fatima Kutzschbach on December 1, 2021

On our trip today, we encountered two different species. First Short-finned Pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus) migrating south-east, followed not far by a school of Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus).

We have resident Pilot whales off Madeira’s coast. Some time ago, animals belonging to the local group were provided with a transmitter. This established that our resident Pilot whales were getting around a bit. Since Pilot whales do not mate in their own group, they depend on meeting another group and finding a mate in order to reproduce. Between Tenerife and La Gomera / Canary Islands, there is a resident population of around 500 Pilot whales. If our Pilot whales now make their way to the Canary Islands, it may be to find a suitable mating partner there in the large single bar of the Pilot whales. After successful mating, they can then comfortably return to their own waters.