29.10.2024 – A seal on new paths

Our resident Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) enchanted all our ocean adventures today. It was a very different marine mammal though that made our day an incomparable one. A Mediterranean Monk seal (Monachus monachus) had decided to take a different turn this morning and spend the whole day inside of Calhetas harbour. Undisturbed by the traffic, he seemed to explore every single boat, including us when trying to head out to sea. At times, we found him napping in the middle of the entrance of the harbour. Have you seen plenty of seals before in your life? Well, I am sure it was not such a unique one. The Mediterranean monk seal is the rarest seal species on the planet, barely recovering after being heavily hunted in the past. There might not be more than 600 or 700 individuals left in the whole world. Around Madeira, we only count with about 35 individuals, finding their haven to rest, give birth to their young and moult on the Desertas Islands. The distance from the islands is the reason why we very rarely observe these adorable seals around Calheta. Today, we cautiously passed by the young individual and took the chance to take some footage, so the individual could get identified. This is exactly what you should do in case you have this unique opportunity to see one of these fabulous animals: Admire them from a safe distance, don’t swim towards them, pet, or feed them and take some pictures if you can to report it here.

by Sarah Kather

Sightings of the day

Ribeira Brava

09:30  Bottlenose dolphins, Mediterranean Monk Seal

13:30 Bottlenose dolphins, Mediterranean Monk Seal

Stenella 

09:30  Bottlenose dolphins, Mediterranean Monk Seal

13:30  Bottlenose dolphins, Mediterranean Monk Seal

16:30  Bottlenose dolphins, Mediterranean Monk Seal