24.09.2019 – Oceanic count down

4 – 3- 2- 1! That describes today’s tour!

Four toothed whale species (Bottlenose dolphins, Pilot whales, Atlantic Spotted dolphins, Sperm whales, and yes, dolphins are among the toothed whales!).

Three dolphin species (Bottlenose dolphins, Pilot whales, Atlantic Spotted dolphins … yes, Pilot whales are among the dolphins … with Orcas they are even the largest of the dolphin species.

Two different social systems! Hierarchy (Bottlenose dolphins, Atlantic Spotted dolphins) and matriarchy (Pilot whales, Sperm whales).

And then of course the experience on the sea was one-time! What a nice trip we had!

It all began with a Loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) who preferred to take off. The Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) were a bit reserved but there were a few closer contacts.

Our observation with the beautiful Pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus) was close and exciting. A small calf, still very wrinkled, was of course the star of the sighting! The Pilot whales glided side by side with us through the blue office. On our first sighting with the Atlantic Spotted dolphins (Stenella frontalis), the animals just flew towards us! In the air they curved their small, rounded bodies …. if that was probably for the perfect freestyle 😉 ?

At the second sighting, the group was visibly busy. They filled their little bellies with many, many mackerels (Scomber scombrus). But not only the Spotted dolphins enjoyed the fishy bite! The Cory’s Shearwaters (Calonectris borealis) also had a good portion. Some ones took the mouth (beak) definitely too full! And do you know the saying “He can not get enough of his neck”? Well, we could watch that today 😉 What a spectacle, which did not slip down in the throat, unfortunately had to be regurgitated again. But there were other customers … dolphins, seagulls. The four Sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) drifted on the ocean surface. Their clear breath “Pffff, Pfff, Pffff” was clearly audible. We were allowed to admire them for a little while but then they dived without much attention. For us it was a unique, beautiful, exciting, touching trip! For the marine mammals, our blue office is their habitat, their home. Home is a place where you should be safe. A place to thrive, to feel good.

Therefore please keep your ecological footprint as low as possible and please support our petitions. https://www.lobosonda.com/whale-watching/marine-protection/

Because the Cory’s Shearwaters touched me in their courageous attempt to grab the biggest bite, they also became today’s title photo. Thank you ocean, thank you nature, thank you wonderful sea mammals, thank you spotter (Carlos) and skipper (Daniel), thank you guests!

By Fatima Kutzschbach

Sightings of the day

Ribeira Brava

13:30 Pilot whales, Bottlenose dolphins, Sperm whales

17:00 Striped dolphins, Bottlenose dolphins, Pilot whales, Sperm whales

Stenella

12:00 Bottelnose dolphins, Pilot whales, Sperm whales, Atlantic Spotted dolphins

15:30 Bottelnose dolphins, Pilot whales, Sperm whales, Atlantic Spotted dolphins, Loggerhead turtle