Futurismo Biologists TeamCalm seas once again in the Azores! Today, we enjoyed a great day of sailing and sightings, thanks to the spectacular sea conditions, which are almost summer-like.
We started our trip with the idea of sailing for some time until spotting the first animals. However, as soon as we left the harbour… surprise! A group of bottlenose dolphins was waiting for us! Definitely a good way to start the day, with a friendly group animals with young ones swimming very close to the shore.
After this, we continued on our way to another area indicated by our lookouts, this time further out. As soon as we started to get closer, it was time to pay attention to the horizon in search of blows, because this time whales seemed to be there!!! We started to see the first blows in the distance, and even the marks left by the flukes in the water when they swim close to the surface. The first information led us to believe that they were sei whales, the third largest animal in the world!
After sailing with our best efforts, the whales seemed to have vanished when, suddenly, a large blow appeared less than half a mile from us. We quickly approached and surprise! It was a huge male sperm whale! Once we had admired the animal, we decided to leave him his space and went in search of his peers. This time a group of 11 individuals, including females, juveniles and calves. The animals gathered while swimming peacefully at the surface or just below. Sometimes being in physical contact with each other.
Once an animal had waved goodbye with its fluke, we moved on to the next area. For our last stop of the day, a large group of common dolphins delighted us with their presence, approaching the boat to bow ride. Once again, numerous mothers with calves made up the group, in this case several newborns which we can tell due to their small size and the birth marks they were still showing. It was undoubtedly great news to see the reproductive success of these animals, as well as the confidence with which they approached us.
In addition to these sightings, another of our boats was lucky enough to see Atlantic spotted dolphins, which have come to the islands to stay for the summer.
If you also want to have the opportunity to appreciate this biodiversity show, don’t hesitate to book your ticket!
Futurismo Biologists Team
Futurismo Biologists Team
Sandrina Rodrigues
