After 8 days at sea, pelagic birding has been very low key and I have only recorded a handful of distant 'Calonectris' shearwaters- presumed to be Cory's but all rather distant (not sure if Cape Verde shearwater disperses this far south?). I also saw a very distant 'probable' tropic bird sp. and a single skua- a long-tailed I think- cold grey tones, long, slender wings, buoyant, tern-like flight…..
I have been much busier with cetaceans though and have recorded 7 confirmed species:- sperm whale, clymene dolphin, short-finned pilot whale, an impressive pod of circa 500 melon-headed whales. Frasers' dolphin, rough-toothed dolphin and spinner dolphin- not a bad haul and I should not complain but the days are very long without a constant stream of seabirds to ID and record!
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| spinner dolphin |
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| spinners |
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| spinners |
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| Frasers' dolphin with calf (foreground), melon-heads behind |
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| melon-headed whales- note the white lips |
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| long-tailed skua-probably? |
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