Rough-toothed dolphin, Blainville’s beaked whales, Bottlenose dolphins, Spotted dolphin, Beaked whale
We have recently seen the following whale and dolphin species on our whale watching tours off La Gomera:
- Rough-toothed dolphin
- Bottlenose dolphins
- Atlantic spotted dolphin
- Blainville’s beaked whales
- Beaked whale (unidentified)
This month we have been really lucky with the rough-toothed dolphins. We have often been able to observe them hunting, in the bow wave of our boat or next to our boat. They were very busy – hunting, playing and pushing turtles around. But it seemed as if we were interesting enough for them to spend time with us after their stomachs were full of fish.
Spotted dolphins approached us from time to time to observe us and swim in the bow wave of our boat.
At the end of the month, we were visited by offshore bottlenose dolphins: these differ significantly from the bottlenose dolphins that live near the coast, as they are stronger and larger in build. Until now, we had tended to encounter them further out, but this time they were only about 3 miles off our coast. Were they here because of the abundance of flying fish?
In the distance, we saw Blainville’s beaked whales for a brief moment.
Unfortunately, there are always sightings of injured or apparently sick animals. They can be recognised by their cut dorsal fins or large spots on their skin.
We also observed loggerhead turtles several times, cuttlefish shearwaters feeding on the carcass of a giant squid, among other things, and other species of shearwaters.
Tangled ropes and nets are deadly for animals when they drift in the sea as ghost nets. Large hooks are often hidden in the middle of them.
That is why we always have to be careful when collecting rubbish at sea.
The sighting rate for this period was 70%.
Fotos: Noel Covián, OCEANO Archiv