Friday 7 December 2012

Minke whale and bottlenose dolphin sighting


Minke whales can also be found in the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian and Arctic Oceans

The sighting of a minke whale swimming with bottlenose dolphins off the Isle of Man coast has been described as "incredibly rare," by a marine expert.

Members of the Manx Whale and Dolphin Watch made the sighting on Thursday.

Sea Watch Foundation director Dr Peter Evans said: "Although this association is known to occur, it is incredibly rare to witness in the British Isles".

The sighting was made from Marine Drive in Douglas in clear conditions at around 13:00.
Manx Whale and Dolphin Watch members Becca Crow and Sarah Kaye described the sighting as "once in a lifetime".

'Clear identification'
Ms Crow said: "Although they were a little way out, the distinct surfacing patterns along with calm water conditions enabled us to make a clear identification through our binoculars.

"They would go one way and then the next. Dive and then reappear. It was incredible.

"Potentially I believe the two species could have been co-operatively hunting and feeding on herring stocks that move round to the east side of the island, during autumn and winter months.

No comments:

Post a Comment

You only need to enter your comment once! Comments will appear once they have been moderated. This is so as to stop the would-be comedian who has been spamming the comments here with inane and often offensive remarks. You know who you are!

Related Posts with Thumbnails

ShareThis