5 species: orcas, fin whales, striped dolphins, bottlenose dolphins and common dolphins!

Today we had an incredible day at sea with some incredible whale and dolphin encounters both in the morning and afternoon. Throughout the day we encountered 5 different cetacean species.

In the morning: bottlenose dolphins, common dolphins, fin whales and striped dolphins.

In the afternoon: orcas (also known as killer whales) and fin whales.

All day we were being treated with one surprise after the next. It started with the bottlenose dolphins, a large and curious group all around our boats, giving an amazing underwater experience for our swimming customers this morning. The common dolphins were just as beautiful, with many individuals bowriding, especially in front of our catamaran “Cetus” where we get the best view. A fin whale and group of energetic striped dolphins put a nice end to our morning whale watching tour (see video below). In the afternoon we started with an encounter with a group of about 6 orcas near Ponta Delgada. They were our regulars that we have been lucky to see here since the beginning of the year. Today they were very curious, especially around our smaller zodiac boats. Our crew got some incredible underwater footage of the orcas swimming very close under the boats (please check back later for the footage that will be uploaded later). In the afternoon we also saw the fin whales, including a mother and juvenile pair right at the end.

Underwater video of the orcas:

A video of the common dolphins with our catamaran this morning can be seen on youtube by clicking HERE.

A video of striped dolphins from this morning can be seen HERE

Photos from the morning: