05.07.2024 – A little caution and cool moments

Our guests were able to observe a variety of animals on the tours of our two boats. On the Ribeira Brava, the Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) were somewhat reserved, but the Atlantic spotted dolphins (Stenella frontalis) showed themselves from their best side. On our midday tour, the Bottlenose dolphins did the honours with their offspring. What great, gentle moments. On the way back, we travelled closely along Madeira’s beautiful coastline. There we discovered countless Portuguese men-o-war (Physalia physalis). So please be careful when swimming in the cool water of our blue Atlantic. The tentacles of these sailing beauties can stretch up to 15 metres long. There are up to 1000 small cnidarian arrows per centimetre of tentacle. An encounter is therefore extremely painful.

Peter, my guide colleague, told me that there was real Spotted dolphin confetti during the midday tour. It’s always great to see how interactive and full of joie de vivre these little dolphins are and how they delight our guests with their agile leaps.

All guests on the morning tour on the Stenella, please take a closer look at the photos of your tour. Peter has achieved a real feat. The Blue Marlin you were watching had, his sashimi breakfast, a small fish impaled on the tip of his sword. To capture such a moment in a photo, you can only say congratulations. Very well done.

By Fatima Kutzschbach

Sightings of the day

Ribeira Brava

09:30 Bottlenose dolphins, Atlantic spotted dolphins

13:30 Bottlenose dolphins, Flying fish, Portuguese man-o-war

Stenella

09:30 Bottlenose dolphins, Atlantic spotted dolphins, Blue Marlin

14:00 Bottlenose dolphins, Atlantic spotted dolphins, Flying fish, Portuguese man-o-war

17:00 Atlantic spotted dolphins, Rough-toothed dolphins