Report: Cetacean trips with David Donnelly - 21st and 22nd May
Over the weekend of 21st and 22nd May, our friend and colleague David Donnelly, Aquarist at Melbourne Aquarium, kindly allowed a number of lucky Marine Centre supporters and volunteers to join his research group on True Blue for some fantastic cetacean watching trips.
On both days, we were blessed with beautiful sunny still days and the sea was as calm as we could expect. Saturday was an amazing day with the following species sighted:
- Large pod of Risso's dolphins - these beautiful mottled grey creatures were in a playful mood, surfing the bow wave for some time and allowing all the photographers to get some great shots
- A few Oceanic Bottlenose dolphins - these agile creatures put on some fantastic breaching displays for the audience.
- Large pod of Pygmy Killer Whales - these normally shy creatures swam alongside for some time which gave the researchers plenty of time to confirm that they were indeed Pygmy killers
- A couple of humpbacks - making slow progress up the coast for the northern migration. They are not usually seen close to our shores during their northern run, moving closer to the shore north of Batemans Bay and onwards. We will no doubt witness the usual large numbers on the southern migration later in the year.
- Unidentified beaked whale species - this was witnessed by several researchers but proved elusive enough to deny positive identification
- Minke whale mother and calf - again, not seen by all the observers - these whales are known for their shy behaviour and it is rare to have the chance to see them for a long period
- A large pod of Common Dolphins swam with the boat for a long period of time on the way back in. A beautiful sight in the setting sun on a perfectly flat ocean - with many putting on fantastic leaping displays for the audience on board. Their athleticism is amazing when swimming off the bow of the boat and kept all enraptured for the trip home.
- Fairy penguin - seen casually swimming near the boat on the trip home
- Australian fur seal - also just cruising around
The Sunday trip enjoyed flat seas and great weather, although the animals were proving a little more elusive, with sightings of humpbacks, minke and again a huge pod of Common Dolphins for the trip home.
Thanks once again to David and his colleagues for offering the opportunity to so many of our supporters to experience a whale watch trip with a difference. David has been conducting these cetacean trips for over 4 years now so it's a whole new experience to be able to ask questions of someone who knows so much about the movements and habits of whales and dolphins.
One thing we all know is - we don't know very much about whales and dolphins that are rarely seen close to shore. The establishment of the Eden Whale & Marine Discovery Centre will no doubt allow much more research work to be carried out so that we may slowly find answers to our many questions about these amazing creatures of the deep.
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