Futurismo Biologists TeamToday we had special guests onboard: a group of students from the Escola Báscia e Secundária Armando Côrtes-Rodrigues in Vila Franca do Campo. For some, it was the first time that they went by boat and it was also the first time that some students and teachers made a trip to observe whales and dolphins.
This July morning started with a cloudy sky and we left with a great desire to find what the lookouts had already sighted through their powerful binoculars …
We left the Ponta Delgada marina towards the southwest, with excellent visibility, low swell and pleasant temperature. Excellent conditions for finding cetaceans.
We travelled for a few minutes until we met the first cetaceans of the day: Atlantic spotted dolphins. It was a group of about 50 individuals that swam towards us in the second they felt our presence! The enthusiasm was audible by all the passengers, if it wasn’t for the masks we could see their big smiles.
This group was very sociable, some swam in the waves of the boat calmly, some jumped and it was even possible to see some dolphins mating. We were also able to see baby dolphins jumping in front of the catamaran!
After a long time with them, we continued our journey to an area that the lookout told us that we could find a bigger species… We arrived at the place and after about 5 minutes there was a huge blow behind us. It was no other than our favorite big male sperm whale: Mr Liable! He took the opportunity to rest on the surface for several minutes and presented us with several blows before showing his huge tail! This is a moment that does not matter how many times you have witnessed, we guarantee that it is always a special moment!
This morning, in the zodiac boat it was also possible to observe and swim with a group of common dolphins, one of the resident species of the Azores and that we can see throughout the year in the archipelago.
Futurismo Biologists Team
Futurismo Biologists Team
Sandrina Rodrigues
