29.08.2017 – Reflection

Another day full of inspiring sightings of marine mammals began marvelously this morning during our snorkeling trip. We had amazingly cooperative guests who behaved perfectly in the water, allowing a curious group of Atlantic spotted dolphins to come VERY close to us and our encounter with them to last much longer. I always tell our guests that the way dolphins interact with us in the ocean is, in part of course, a reflection of how we behave in the water. This is put rather superficially due to the complex behavior on the part of these animals and their perception of the situation but, in a nutshell, a calm and careful demeanor in the water is key to a superb experience with them. Our group this morning achieved this and were able to collect memorable moments with these highly intelligent creatures.

I spent the rest of the day on our zodiac and the dolphin sightings continued. Both the Ribeira Brava and the Stenella managed to find Atlantic spotted dolphins as well as Striped dolphins. The Striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) was a species I perceived as being rather shy in nature as the schools always kept their distance to our boats. Today they were bowriding and leaping around our vessels, a behavior we are more likely to associate with their close relative, the Atlantic spotted dolphin (Stenella frontalis).

by Paula Thake

Sightings

Ribeira Brava

17:00 Atlantic spotted dolphins, Striped dolphins

Stenella

09:00 Atlantic spotted dolphins (Snorkelling), Striped dolphins

15:30 Atlantic spotted dolphins

18:00 Atlantic spotted dolphins, Striped dolphins

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