The end of the beginning

Yesterday saw the finale to the winter phase of the Northeast Cetacean Project...and there couldn't have been a more appropriate way to do it. Our specially invited list of participants gathered at Royal Quays marina just before 9am ready to board the SarahJFK for a trip to the Farne Deeps. We'd invited all of the key organisations so there were representatives from Natural England, Marinelife, Northern Experience Wildlife Tours, Northumberland & Tyneside Bird Club, Northumberland Wildlife Trust, Newcastle University and the Sea Fisheries Protection Office. Sadly, David Steel was stuck on the Farne Islands so couldn't join us, and the Chief Exec of the NWT had had a breakdown in his car (not him personally, his car had broken down).

As we set sail on a flat calm sea (so very, very different from any of the survey dates...) the draft report for the initial project was available for discussion, plans were formulated for the next stage of the project and we were able to enjoy some very relaxed birdwatching. Puffins were probably the most numerous bird seen during the day, Kittiwakes followed the boat for much of the trip, being their endearing selves, Gannets passed by, an occasional Fulmar glided along effortlessly and we managed to see two cetaceans; both were very brief - one Harbour Porpoise and one unidentified animal. As we returned to Royal Quays there was great deal to ponder; our report will draw some interesting conclusions, which will surely lead to more questions, more surveys, more seawatching, more pelagics.

Recent sightings

2 juvenile Minke Whales reported off Eyemouth yesterday

Request for cetacean sightings

As part of the Northeast Cetacean Project (a partnership involving Marinelife, Natural England, NTBC and Northern Experience Wildlife Tours) we are compiling a database of cetacean sightings for northeast England.

Northumberland and Tyneside Bird Club and Durham Bird Club members, along with Marinelife volunteers, are involved in our ongoing seabird/cetacean surveys, but we are keen to extend our cetacean database as far back as 2003 (or even earlier if significant records can be unearthed).

Whilst compiling the database it has been noticeable that there seem to be a lot of cetacean sightings that are written in notebooks but not published anywhere. If you do have sightings of any cetaceans then we would be grateful if you would submit them for inclusion in our database. We're including tideline strandings/corpses in the database so please send records of those if you have any.The key data are; Date, Species, Number, Location, Observer. Less important, but still of interest if you have this level of detail are Time, Behaviour, Direction of Travel.

Please send records to Northeast Cetacean Project, 18 Frances Ville, Scotland Gate, Northumberland, NE62 5ST or e-mail martin.kitching1'at'btopenworld.com

Martin Kitching
Lead Surveyor, Northeast Cetacean Project

Exciting New Dolphin Project off Northeast Coast

White-beaked Dolphin (c)Adrian Shephard/Marinelife

Marinelife and Natural England launch a new project to monitor White-Beaked Dolphins and other marine wildlife in the waters off the Northumberland coast with Northern Experience Wildlife Tours.

The White-Beaked Dolphin is a little studied species which occurs around the coast of the UK and is vulnerable to the effects of global warming. It lives in the cold waters of the northern Atlantic and its available habitat is thought to be shrinking. There is little detailed information on the status of the species around the UK and the charity Marinelife has been studying these dolphins as well as other marine mammal species and seabirds off the south west coast of the UK for a number of years.

Now thanks to funding from Natural England (£17,700) and the Northumberland and Tyneside Bird Club (£1000), a new project starts this month to discover more about White-Beaked Dolphins and other species in the rarely studied Farne Deeps off the Northumberland coast. The partnership includes Marinelife, Natural England, the Northumberland and Tyneside Bird Club, the University of Aberdeen, and Northern Experience Wildlife Tours - who will coordinate the winter surveys in the Farne Deeps and surrounding waters.

Dr. Tom Brereton, Research Director for Marinelife commented: “Our work along the coast of the south west has provided useful information on the distribution of White-Beaked Dolphins and their preferred habitats and this project will help complement and extend the existing work. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the area around the Farne Deeps will be important not only for White-Beaked Dolphins, but also for wintering seabirds”.

As with the project along the south west coast, the aim is to engage the local community in the conservation work and the value of safeguarding this species. It is believed the work can also raise the profile of Northumberland as an eco-tourism destination. A sightings website and postcard survey will be launched for local fishermen, recreational dive and angling boats, and yachtsmen to submit any sightings of White-beaked Dolphin and other cetacean species.

Dr. Catherine Scott, Marine Advisor for Natural England North East added: “Natural England is delighted to be supporting this exciting project. The survey will help us understand more about the importance of the sea off Northumberland for these little-known marine mammals, which are a priority species for wider marine protection. This is a great way for the North East to mark the start of the International Year of Biodiversity and it’s possible that this survey will discover that we have a nationally important stronghold for White-Beaked Dolphins off the coast of Northumberland. Through this new project, the North East is playing a vital role in identifying the areas which need protection to safeguard the future for this species around the UK.” Dr. Martin Kitching, lead surveyor from Northern Experience said: "We have been recording White-Beaked Dolphins and other wildlife along the coast of Northumberland for seven years, and now systematically investigating the off-shore waters during the winter months, and engaging with the local community, provides a real opportunity to define the North Sea off Northumberland as an important area for conservation efforts".

The project also involves setting up a photographic database of dolphins that will help experts to identify individual animals. In future, the ‘photo fits’ taken of dolphins in waters off South West and North East England will help find out how wide ranging the animals are and whether the two populations are linked.

White-Beaked Dolphins are a species limited in distribution to the colder waters of the Atlantic. The North Sea represents some of the coldest waters around the UK coastline and this new project will strengthen the scientific data about this and other species in this area and help support conservation efforts for this vulnerable species.

Sperm Whale

30ft Sperm Whale currently stranded on the rocks at Beadnell. BDMLR are on site but the tide is falling so the outlook isn't good.

Scouring the seas

A major project for NEWT this winter is an offshore survey, primarily to search for White-beaked Dolphins, covering most of Northumberland's waters out to a distance of 20-35 miles (depending which sector we're surveying on any given day). As it's incredibly weather-dependent we're running the surveys at fairly short notice (we're usually confident enough to arrange the boat and the survey team 3-4 days in advance of sailing).

We've got a few spaces available for passengers on each survey, which are available at very low cost, so give us a call on 01670 827465 if you think you might enjoy a 7 hour pelagic into the unknown at some point in the next 6 weeks.

Best wishes for the New Year :-)

Tracking the leviathan

I had a call yesterday evening from Andy Tait, cetacean-watcher, videographer and NEWT pelagic guide. He'd had an e-mail from a cetacean researcher in Aberdeen, also cc'd to one of the country's top cetacean experts, asking the question "minke - seen this id'able character?"

Imagine Andy's surprise when the link he'd been sent was the one to the gallery on the NEWT website...

http://www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk/gallery.php?type=1&gallery=17

Here's one of the images;

That distinctive notch in the dorsal fin should mean that there's a good chance of the animal being located elsewhere. In fact I've seen an image of a minke, taken in the Hebrides in May 2008 (4 months prior to the image above), which is almost certainly the same animal. Which is interesting because it proves that there is movement of Minke Whales between the well-studied population in the Hebrides and the ones that we find off Northumberland in mid-late Summer.

The funny thing is that Andy was standing next to me when I took that photo, so he has seen this character. We've got this animal at two different locations, and we know the maximum length of time it took to travel between them. Hopefully more images will come to light and we'll have an even better picture of where this whale goes, and when.

With increasing interest in offshore wildlife trips there could well be more instances of photo 're-captures', and the potential for anyone on a pelagic trip with a camera to contribute to our knowledge of the distribution and movements of our cetaceans.