Non-avian life was seen as well with 2 species of beaked whale glimpsed on Wednesday, and closer interactions with Spotted Dolphins and Pilot Whales on Thursday. We also had a quick look at a Loggerhead Turtle on the way out Thursday morning and one of the participants spotted some Ocean Sunfish (Mola mola) on the surface in the afternoon. As Brian turned back on them, one breached! Incredible to see this massive creature, silvery in the afternoon light, leap out of the water momentarily! We spent some time observing them moving in line on the surface and Brian commented that because the water is so warm this time of year, it is rare to see them on the surface, typically they are much deeper. We also had a Hammerhead shark sighting, though we did not get a really good look at the head to see if it was a Scalloped or Great Hammerhead. On Wednesday we dipped some Sargassum (two species!) in the afternoon and had incredible creatures in there: a Sargassum frogfish, some Seaslugs (nudibranchs), shrimp, a filefish, and some swimming crabs. A link to a blog post by Sea McKeon about the inhabitants of this type of brown algae is here. Early that same morning on the way out, a small group of flying squid flushed by the boat! Flying fish were also seen in large numbers each day.
Species List for June 5 & 6
Black-capped Petrel
Cory's Shearwater
Great Shearwater
Sooty Shearwater
Audubon's Shearwater
Wilson's Storm-Petrel
Leach's Storm-Petrel
Band-rumped Storm-Petrel
Bridled Tern
Pomarine Jaeger
Long-tailed Jaeger
Cuvier's Beaked Whale
Gervais' Beaked Whale
Pilot Whale
Atlantic Spotted Dolphin
Loggerhead Turtle
Ocean Sunfish
Hammerhead
Thanks to Bob Fogg for photos from the two trips, and also for joining us for a number of trips this spring. Capt. Brian Patteson also contributed some excellent photos for this post!
Wilson's Storm-Petrels - photo by Bob Fogg
Wilson's Storm-Petrel - photo Brian Patteson
Leach's Storm-Petrel - photo Bob Fogg
Band-rumped Storm-Petrels (2) with Wilson's in the slick - photo Brian Patteson
Band-rumped Storm-Petrels - 3 photos Brian Patteson
Band-rumped Storm-Petrels - 3 photos Bob Fogg
Pomarine Jaeger - photo Brian Patteson
Pomarine Jaeger - 2 photos Bob Fogg
Long-tailed Jaeger - 2 photos Brian Patteson
Long-tailed Jaeger - photo Bob Fogg
Sargassum frogfish - 2 photos Brian Patteson
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