Sightings May 2012

Plenty of Harbour Porpoise sightings throughout the month with up to 5 from the shore at Scarborough (S. Baines)

6 Bottlenose Dolphins (including a very small calf) S past Snab Point on 8th (M.Kitching/Northern Experience Wildlife Tours)

Sighting of the month though, was a large whale 1.5nm E of Cresswell, initially identified as a Humpback Whale, and later reidentified as a Sperm Whale, during a North East Cetacean Project transect survey on PV St Oswald on 31st (R.Milor/NECP).

Happy New Year

An astonishing start to 2011, with a Humpback Whale watched as it passed slowly N 0.75km off Whitburn between 13:05-13:40 (M. Newsome/S. Addinall)

ORCA

With ORCA (Organisation Cetacea) having wildlife officers and volunteer surveyors on the DFDS ferry King of Scandinavia for this coming summer, they'll be adding to our knowledge of cetacean distribution in the North Sea. Kathryn and Steph have kindly offered to let me know of any cetacean and seabird sightings they have so that we can add them to the blog. Updates will initially be as comments below this post, but we're hoping to welcome the girls as authors on northeastcetaceans soon.

A quick glance at the database I've collated as part of the Northeast Cetacean Project has some really exciting cetaceans in amongst the 'expected' species; Bottlenose Dolphin, Common Dolphin, Harbour Porpoise, Humpback Whale, Minke Whale, Orca, Pilot Whale, Risso's Dolphin, Sei Whale, Sperm Whale, Striped Dolphin, White-beaked Dolphin and White-sided Dolphin have all been reported in the last decade.

Birdwatching in the North Sea can be a bit erratic, but it can be extremely good...so I'd like to wish Kathryn and Steph luck in finding something really special on one of their crossings. Hmmm...Black-capped Petrel :-) Not Cape Gannet or Pacific Fulmar though - they're my top tips for this year's Northern Experience Pelagics..or for the Northumberland seawatching mecca that is Newbiggin by the Sea ;-)

Recent reports

Friday 18th September, 6-7 Bottlenose Dolphins off Holy Island

Saturday 19th September, Humpback Whale 2 miles E of Newton by the Sea - it's still out there!

The Humpback Whale was found at 11:45 by a very surprised lobster fisherman. Well, you would be surprised if a 12m cetacean that you weren't aware of suddenly breached next to your boat! John Dawson on Glad Tidings V set out from Seahouses to search for it, but it had moved away by the time they arrived off Newton. Several hours of searching didn't reveal it's location. Surely the same animal seen off Longstone on Sunday 13th.