dolphins

Cookie cutter on Azores dolphin

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September 22nd, 2010 by Miguel Cravinho

The end of the summer is approaching, but fortunately here in São Miguel it feels far away still. Dolphins and whales cheer us up whenever encountered making everyday special and bright!

This week (13-19 September 2010), we observed five different species, the bottlenose dolphins, the common dolphins, the Atlantic spotted dolphins, the pilot whales and the sperm whales.

Both whales and dolphins are often seen breaching out of the water with spectacular jumps. The reason for these acrobatic leaps can be various from courtship display, simple fun or related to a less joyful cause like trying to eliminate parasites! Cetaceans are in fact affected by various ectoparasites which in some cases can produce damage on their skin, but do not cause death.

Below is a photo of an Atlantic spotted dolphin (Stenella frontalis) while leaping out of the water and showing a parasite attached on its flank.

Ectoparasites of whales and dolphins include the acorn and stalked barnacles typically found on humpback whales, or the Cryptolepas rhachianecti another barnacle species found on gray whales. Barnacles are not true parasites as they don’t feed on whale skin, rather they exploit the swimming of the whales to filter food in the water. However, when in great number they can bother whale movements. Gray whales are also affected by lices gathering around wounds and scars and feeding on their skin. Other parasites damaging skin tissue are cookie cutter sharks and possibly sea lampreys.

During one of our encounters with Atlantic spotted dolphins we had the chance to enjoy the sighting of some young individuals leaping high into the air. One of them, at closer look, showed a parasite attached on its flank. Although the resolution of the picture doesn’t help to identify the parasite, its size and shape suggests it could be a cookie cutter shark.

Cookie cutter sharks (Isistius brasiliensis) are so called because they leave cookie-shaped scars on the body of large fishes and marine mammals. They have a cylindrical body and a circular mouth, which contains many teeth used by the shark to remove the flesh of the host.

When we see dolphins showing their acrobatic skills it is not necessarily due to parasites luckily for them, and many exhibitions are related to a courtship display during the breeding season.

Topics: dolphins, Sao Miguel, whale watching
Posted in azores news
Permalink: Cookie cutter on Azores dolphin

Super Azores holiday in every respect

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July 15th, 2010 by Sarah Bennett

More lovely comments in today - thank you!
“Super holiday in every respect. We loved the scenery and geography and abundance of flowers. It was all so peaceful and dividing the holiday between three islands made it feel like three holidays. The people were friendly and welcoming. Food excellent but lacked vegetables. Often one meal was plenty for two people. A great trip right from planning to doing and remembering. thank you for your help throughout.”
Mr & Mrs Birkmyre (Sao Miguel, Faial & Flores – 12-26 June 2010)

“Just to thank everyone who made the trip so enjoyable – Jake, Ian and all the team in the Azores. Everyone seemed to do their best to be helpful and make the trip as enjoyable as possible for us. It is greatly appreciated and we will certainly sing your praises to everyone we know who wants to make the trip to such a beautiful place with so much natural flora and fauna to see and enjoy.”
Mr & Mrs Finlayson (Whale watching & swimming with dolphins on Sao Miguel – 13-23 May 2010)

Topics: dolphins, whale watching
Posted in Azores Testimonials
Permalink: Super Azores holiday in every respect

White dolphin spotted in the Azores

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September 23rd, 2009 by Serge Viallelle

white dolphin Pico, Azores : On 17th September at around 4:30pm, Pedro Madruga met a large group of spotted dolphins, more than 200 individuals, 3 miles south of the Manhenha lighthouse on Pico. He described the group as “very interactive” and probably a new group as he wasn’t able to identify any of the individuals and because the behaviour of the dolphins was very “naive”…for sure they had never met any homo sapiens turistus disturbis before !!!!

Until this point , it was nothing more than a very good encounter to be shared between sea (observed) and land (observer) mammal ! But suddenly a small white shadow appeared to the left of the boat…. from the shadow surfaced a white dolphin.
The Azorean sea gave us Moby Dick’s great son a fews weeks ago, this time we had this incredible encounter white dolphin 2 with a white dolphin.
Greetings from sunny Pico, and thanks to Pedro for the photos.

Serge Viallelle

Topics: dolphins, pico
Posted in azores news
Permalink: White dolphin spotted in the Azores

New whale watching boat on Sao Miguel

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July 14th, 2009 by Miguel Cravinho

Hello my friends,
Just to inform you that our new boat has finally arrived! Whale watching boat 1 Especially designed to provide safety, comfort and still a close contact to Nature, this new equipment will certainly update our fleet, providing our clients with an excellent experience discovering the Atlantic Ocean and – of course – the “amazing world of whales and dolphins”.
The new boat is 11 meters long, powered by 2 engines (4 stroke) of 250cv – the most energy efficient/environmentally friendly on the market – the boat layout provides 22 individual seats with 4 seats in the rear part, particularly designed for families with children or “older” people (next to the skipper).
The boat was build in Viana do Castelo, northern Portugal, by SEARIBS. It’s the result of a customised project bring together the skills of the boat’s factory and the specific needs of our whale watching operation giving birth to a high performance and extremely fun boat.

Hope you enjoy it. Whale watching boat 2
Best regards.

Miguel

For information on a whale watching holiday aboard this great new boat, click here

Topics: dolphins, Family, Sao Miguel, whale watching, whales
Posted in azores news
Permalink: New whale watching boat on Sao Miguel

New whale and dolphin photos

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June 22nd, 2009 by Miguel Cravinho