23.07.2020 Small flying objects and a thriller of the ocean

Published by Fatima Kutzschbach on July 29, 2020

As we left the harbor, the spotter Higino informed us that he had no marine mammals in sight. A short time later, the message came that he was going to change his location in order to survey another area. Of course, the crew on board also always keeps their eyes open. And our guests do as they please. Some enjoy the ride on the Ribeira Brava, let themselves be gently rocked by the sea and simply forgetting everyday life, others prefer to let their eyes wander. Our spotter, however, has the great task of being completely concentrated and looking for abnormalities at sea. At this point a big thanks to Higino!

While we glided over the sea and were sometimes cooled with some seawater, we discovered small flying objects of a special kind. Flying fishes (Cheilopogon melanurus) sailed elegantly over the water and really, today was the day of the Flying fish. Our guests enjoyed the spectacle of the small flying objects.

And then came the sighting report! Good news, there was a school of Bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus)! These powerful animals glided under the bow of the Ribeira Brava; they swam belly to belly; we saw spyhops (dolphin lifts its head out of the water); synchronized swimming was on the daily schedule and also some leaps.

The best thing was these Bottlenose dolphins seemed to lead us straight to the whales. Suddenly there was a spout in sight! Such moments are full of excitement, because you only see the whales exhale a few times and then … for a while nothing … until the animal comes up to breathe again. Where will the animal show up again? Is it still there? It was clear these are a baleen whales (far away we saw a second spout), but due to the distance, no clear identification could take place. Unfortunately, the photos taken turned out not to be as significant as hoped. But on a rather blurry photo, I think I could see three longitudinal ridges, which indicates, like the whole behavior, a Tropical whale (Balaenoptera edeni) . Yes, sometimes that’s the way it is: some things remain a wonderful mystery. It was a very exiting and wonderful trip for everybody on board.