3 Humpbacks (plus a couple in the distance)
2,500 Common Dolphins
We had an incredible day! Conditions were perfect! Miles & miles of visibility,
& glassy, clear water. We encountered many pods of Common Dolphins throughout
the trip. Adam spotted 2 Humpbacks breaching about 8 miles from where we were &
Captain Colton caught up to them. One was slapping its pectoral fin a ton and
one did a full breach right as we approached.
They ended up being super friendly/curious whales and came right up to the
boat. The circled us, swam through our jet streams, blew bubbles, spy hopped,
chin slapped, & threw their tails around. They spent over an hour with us and
gave the passengers & crew many amazing looks. The super clear water allowed us
to see the whales (& Dolphins) well below the surface & we got to see some cool
underwater behaviors like a whale rolling upside down & one using its pectoral
fins to generate speed!
There were also a lot of jellies in the water today & we saw many siphonophores
(identified for us by Bob Perry) which I had never seen before! For those who
don’t know, Siphonophores are related to jellies but are colonial organisms
made up of individual specimens. So cool!!
Crew: Captain Colton, Austin, Kelly
Photographers: Bob Perry & Adam Ernster
Naturalist: Linda Bentsen
I was PID
