14.11.2023 – Elegant swing into the blue
November 21, 2023
16.11.2023 – A Trifecta of Dolphin Delights!
November 23, 2023
We didn’t have to search long to find cetaceans out on the Atlantic this morning. Our team headed west and was able to track down a pod of Short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macorhrynchus) that were travelling in the company of very active Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). Our Stenella even managed another sighting of its namesake dolphins, the Atlantic spotted dolphins (Stenella frontalis), further offshore and, thanks to our newly acquired hydrophone, managed to make these sightings both a visual and acoustic experience.
Apart from inhabiting a completely different habitat than us, cetaceans also perceive the world in a completely different way to human beings. While human beings are generally visual creatures, cetaceans like many other marine animals rely mainly on their acoustics. This makes sense since sound waves travel far more efficiently in water than they do in the air and our hydrophone enables us to hear this wonderful concoction of sound during our sightings.
The sightings of Bottlenose dolphins and pilot whales continued in the afternoon, as did our acoustic experiences with our hydrophone. Once these gadgets are full integrated into our workplace, we can begin recording the bioacoustics of cetaceans we encounter and understand a little more about the beautiful world of sound surrounding these wondrous creatures.
By Paula Thake
Sightings of the day
Ribeira Brava
09:30 Bottlenose dolphins, Short-finned pilot whales
Stenella
09:30 Atlantic spotted dolphins, Bottlenose dolphins, Short-finned pilot whales
13:30 Bottlenose dolphins, Short-finned pilot whales
