28.06.2025 – Fun day full of surprises
July 5, 2025
…in fact they are all wonderfully different! We tend to base our picture of dolphins on what we know about the best studied dolphin, the Bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), and many people even base their expectation on behaviour on what can be seen during shows at dolphinariums. The reality at sea is quite different: behaviour depends on the situation and the species, especially since all have a different ecology which affects their social dynamics and in turn this can be reflected in their reaction towards us. Todays array of dolphin species allowed our team to highlight the diversity of this group of animals, in the morphological, ecological and behavioural sense.
Bottlenose dolphins typically exhibit a more timid behaviour during the summer months due to their preference for coastal waters which puts them into frequent contact with maritime traffic. Todays dolphins, however, did approach our vessels and we even had a few curious individuals lift their heads to observe their observers (observation is always a two-way street with this species).
The two members of the Stenella genus visiting Madeira differ in both their reaction towards boats as well as their site fidelity. The Atlantic spotted dolphins (Stenella frontalis) fearlessly leap towards our boats during an encounter and are by far the most abundant dolphin species in the summer months. The beautiful Striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba) can be seen all year round and tend to enter the islands waters in small, evasive nursery pods. Both species are aerial acrobats, impressing both guests and crew with incredible leaps.
Rough-toothed dolphins (Steno bredanensis) are another interactive species which our guests aboard the morning tours were lucky to encounter. These dolphins of the high seas are often associated with oceanic islands and display incredibly close relationships to their pod members as well as a complex variety of surface behaviours which include breaches, spy-hopping and barrel-rolling.
By Paula Thake
Sightings of the day
Ribeira Brava
09:00 Bottlenose dolphins, Rough-toothed dolphins, Striped dolphins
Stenella
09:30 Bottlenose dolphins, Rough-toothed dolphins, Striped dolphins
13:30 Atlantic spotted dolphins, Bottlenose dolphins, Striped dolphins
16:00 Atlantic spotted dolphins, Bottlenose dolphins, Striped dolphins, Short-finned pilot whale
