Sea Watch News
24 August - Minke whale spotted in Cardigan Bay
Images recently sent in by an observer has confirmed that a minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) was sighted off Criccieth and heading towards Black Rock Sands off Porthmadog, in northern Cardigan Bay on the 27th July.
Minke whales are the most abundant of all baleen whales and are widely distributed in the UK including the northern and central North Sea as far as Yorkshire and along the Atlantic seaboard. This species is sometimes seen in the Irish Sea but mainly in the deeper central region. It is rare to see this animal within Cardigan Bay, although there have been a handful of sightings in past years.
Unfortunately on Sunday 22nd August, the body of a 7.6 metre minke whale was found washed up in a cove near Pwhelli, not far from where the animal was originally sighted. It is assumed that this is the same animal. Rod Penrose from the Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme has said that the whale was a male and in a very poor condition and had likely died on the beach overnight from starvation.
19 August - National Whale & Dolphin Watch 2010 summary so far....
We have just come to the end of National Whale & Dolphin Watch (NWDW) 2010 which took place between 7th and 15th August. The aim of this event is to raise awareness of the status of UK cetaceans and to collect a large volume of effort and sightings data that can produce a snapshot of the distribution of cetaceans in UK waters. Sightings reports and data sheets are continuing to come in. However, so far there have been 322 sightings of eight cetacean species reported. The most commonly reported species is the harbour porpoise with 144 reports. Bottlenose dolphins were the second-most regularly sighted species with 105 records. These two species made up the vast majority of sightings. There have also been 35 minke whale reports, 13 short-beaked common dolphin, seven Risso’s dolphin, five killer whale, four white-beaked dolphin, one northern bottlenose whale and eight counts of unidentified cetaceans.
Interesting sightings to note include:
- two northern bottlenose whales in the Wash, Norfolk
- four bottlenose dolphins in the Dee Estuary
- 20 white-beaked dolphins off the Farne Islands and Whitburn, Co. Durham
- 60 short-beaked common dolphins reported repeatedly in the Inner Hebrides & NW coast of Scotland
Sightings hotspots include:
- New Quay, Ceredigion
- Thurso Bay, Caithness
- Strathy Point, North Sutherland
- Swiney Hill, Lybster, Caithness
- Chanonry Point, Moray Firth
- Berryhead, South Devon
- Loch Gairloch, Ross-shire
If you spotted any cetaceans during NWDW, please send them in to sightings@seawatchfoundation.org.uk -it is not too late! If you did a timed cetacean watch during the event but had no sightings, please let us know about it. This information is just as important as the sightings. You can post filled forms to Gemma Veneruso, Paragon House, New Quay, Ceredigion, SA45 9NR. The full NWDW 2010 report will be available shortly.
Many thanks to all that participated!
17 August - Young humpback whale strands in Cornwall
A body of a young humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) has been washed ashore off St Ives, Cornwall. It is believed by experts to be same juvenille that was sighted off the coast of St. Ives on the 27th July 2010. Members from the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) had been monitoring the whale for over a month when it was first seen by a marker buoy off Godrevy Point, Cornwall, the humpback disappeared from the area on the 31st July.
This is a tragic end to the unusual visitor, humpback whales are a rare vistor to the shores of the UK. Growing up to 16 metres long humpbacks follow a migration route that takes them up to 25,000km from their breeding grounds in the tropics to their feeding grounds in the North Atlantic, where they enjoy a diet of krill and small fish. A single calf between 4.5 to 5 metres long is born every two to three years.
This is the first known record of a humpback whale stranding in Cornwall. On the 12th September 2009, a humpback was recorded for the first time ever in the Thames River, London and subquently was found beached two days later. Prior to this one was found stranded at Port Talbot, South Wales in 2007.
Researchers are hoping that some DNA may be extracted from the body tissue samples taken possibly enabling scientists to identify which population the whale belonged to and further understand humpback whales better. The carcass was identified by volunteers from Cornwall Wildlife Trust Marine Strandings Network as a male of 5.9m in length with its baleen still in an early stage of development this suggests that the calf was still maternally dependent on its mother.
7 August - Rare Sighting of Bottlenose Dolphin Recorded in Belgium Waters
A rare visitor to the shores of the Netherlands coast occurred this week when a bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncates) was sighted between 1st and 3rd August near Westerscheldt, Antwerp. The animal was then seen again further west from Cadzand on the 6th. Sightings of bottlenose dolphin species are an unusual sight in the southern North Sea. Usually they can be found along the Atlantic seaboard of Europe, commonly sighted near shore off the coasts of north-west France, western Ireland with resident populations in the Shannon estuary, Irish sea (Cardigan Bay) and north-east Scotland (the Moray Firth).
The dolphin visitor is suspected to be the same animal that was recorded the previous week hanging around with simmers at the coastal town of Knokke, Belgium on the 20th and 30th July 2010. Bottlenose dolphins have been recorded over the past few years off the coast of Belgium and the Netherlands. Back in 2002 a dolphin nicknamed ‘Randy’ appeared for a few days at the beginning of December in around Blankenberge and Antwerp harbours, and an unnamed but easily recognisable individual appeared off the Netherlands coast in 2007 and 2008.
Researchers have been able to identify this particular individual as an adult male using photo ID from images taken by Michel Neve, even though the dorsal fin region is fairly unmarked it is hoped that researchers from both sides of the channel may be able to use other body scars to trace the origin of this individual. The Sea Watch Foundation is running a Photo-a-fin campaign which is urging members of the public to help to solve the mysteries of the movements of certain UK cetacean populations by taking photos of the fins of any they spot.
Sea Watch asks people to send in any photos of dolphins and whales that show details of nicks and markings on fins to photo@seawatchfoundation.org.uk. The pictures can then be compared to others held on national ID databases at the charity’s base in Wales, and with catalogues held by other organisations in the UK. Alongside the pictures Sea Watch need to know where and when they were taken.
5 August - Large numbers of white-beaked dolphins off the Aberdeenshire coast
;)
On both the 30th of July and the 1st of August, the waters off Aberdeen, Scotland were filled with white-beaked dolphins. Whilst performing an effort based watch, Kevin Hepworth, SWF Regional Coordinator spotted the dolphins (as well as harbour porpoise and minke whale) from Souter Head on the 30th and Donmouth on the 1st. The dolphins were seen in the morning of both days with numbers peaking at 46 on the 30th and 62 on the 1st. It seemed to be all fun and games with these dolphins, as there was lots of leaping and splashing throughout the sightings!
White-beaked dolphins are actually the most common dolphin species in the UK, so they are not an unusual sight. However, it is uncommon to see them in such large numbers so close to shore. It is likely that these groups were following in schools of fish.
White-beaked dolphins get their name from the thick, short white beak. Interestingly, their name can be a misnomer because the beak can be black or grey as well. They have striking black and white colouring and can sometimes be confused with Atlantic white-sided dolphins. However, a distinguishing feature of the species is white behind the dorsal fin.
You can join Kevin on a number of land watches during National Whale & Dolphin Watch, 7th-15th August 2010. Click here for watch details or contact Kevin on 07818680129 or grampianseawatch@yahoo.co.uk.