Last day of October

This year the summer seems to have has come and gone very fast, as we are already in the last day of October. But we are still getting plenty of really good whale watching and dolphin swimming tours, and today we were even lucky enough to have really excellent calm sea conditions. This morning we had a boat going out for swimming with dolphins and another for whale watching, and it did not take us long before we encountered a group of common dolphins just outside of Ponta Delgada. Throughout the rest of the morning we moved around several different groups our 3 resident dolphin species: common dolphins, Risso's dolphins and bottlenose dolphins. Our swimming clients had an especially great experience swimming with around 100 bottlenose dolphins:

Swimming with bottlenose dolphins

 One of our resident bottlenose dolphins

The Risso's dolphins were also really special to see today. First we encountered a lone individual that was chasing a small local fishing boat. We often see these dolphins hanging around fishing boats, as they love to take the squid that the fishermen are fishing out of the deep waters. Not long after we encountered a larger group of Risso's dolphins, perhaps the lone individual belongs this group. This is something we will be able to confirm later when we analyse photographs that we take of their dorsal fins for identification.



Over the last few weeks

Over the last few weeks we have been seeing many really great groups of dolphins, such as the Atlantic spotted dolphins in the photos above. Up until today we have been seeing common dolphins every day that we have been out this month. As well as large groups of these common and spotted dolphins we have been seeing our resident bottlenose dolphins (with our most recent encounter being this morning) and we have also had a few encounters with sperm whales, pilot whales and Risso's dolphins. Luckily for us here in the Azores we can see several species year round, so there is always something for us to see.

Dolphins, birds and turtles

Another day of excellent sea and weather conditions here for us in São Miguel!

This morning we went out on what turned out to be another great whale watching tour. Although there were no whales in the area there was plenty of other wildlife around for us to see. Our tour started off with a group of common dolphins that were leaping out of the water as they were travelling very fast to the west:

Common dolphins

We travelled with the group for a while, also observing many birds along the way. As well as our usual bird sightings this morning we also saw some Manx shearwaters, a very beautiful species as you can see in the photo taken during the tour:

Manx shearwater

Unfortunately we also came across a dead bird that was entangled in a piece of fishing net. A sad reminder that we need to be more careful with things like fishing nets and other forms of litter that can be deadly for seabirds, dolphins, whales, turltes and many other species.

Bird tangled in a piece of fishing net

Later in the tour we went a bit further offshore where we came across a loggerhead turtle at the surface, followed by a very large and playful group of Atlantic spotted dolphins. Another very good tour for us here in the Azores.

 Loggerhead turtle

Big groups of dolphins with calves

Today we had were lucky to have very calm seas and great sighting conditions for our whale watching and dolphin swimming tours. In the morning we started of with an encounter with common dolphins not too far out of Ponta Delgada. After watching these resident dolphins for a while we headed further east while our swimmers stayed to swim with the common dolphins. At the eastern end of São Miguel island we encountered a large group of bottlenose dolphins. The dolphins were very social and we got to see several of their calves in the group.

 Bottlenose dolphins: Young calf surfacing alongside its mother

Bottlenose dolphins

Our afternoon tours began again with the common dolphins close to shore. As our swimming clients were in the water they had the bonus of seeing a loggerhead turtle right where the dolphins were passing. Later in the afternoon we also saw a large group of several hundred Atlantic spotted dolphins. There was a lot of activity within the group, as several dolphins were putting on amazing acrobatic displays while great shearwaters and Cory's shearwaters were swooping around (to the delight of several bird enthusiasts we had onboard), probably indicating that the dolphins were feeding.

Adult Atlantic spotted dolphin

Juvenile Atlantic spotted dolphin

Great shearwater

Another successful day on the sea

Today was another successful day on the sea for us. This morning we had a dolphin swimming tour and two other boats going out for whale watching. Although the sea was a bit rough in places, getting us all a bit wet, we managed to see 4 different cetacean species: sperm whales, bottlenose dolphins, common dolphins and Atlantic spotted dolphins. Recently we have not been seeing whales on as many of our tours as we did during the summer months, so it was a bonus to see the whales.

Our passengers this morning searching and waiting for a whale to come to the surface

One of the 3 sperm whales we saw together at the surface this morning

Lots of dolphins

The above photo shows some of our passengers watching a group of Atlantic spotted dolphins this morning. As well as this group of spotted dolphins we also encountered two groups of common dolphins on this tour. Our passengers included a few families, so we had several children onboard who really loved to see the large groups of dolphins swimming all around our boat.

Sperm whales to the West!

This morning our passengers were very happy to encounter a group of sperm whales! During our encounter we sighted 5 individuals: 3 adults, 1 juvenile and 1 calf. To see these whales we had to travel quite far to the west, to an area where the water is around 2000 meters deep! But it was well worth the trip, and we even got to see 2 of the adults raise their tales to go on their deep feeding dives. The following photo is of the last whale we saw, a large adult that raised it's tail particularly high to bring a fantastic end to our tour:

Before we saw the sperm whales we also had a really good encounter with a large group of common dolphins close to the coastline. We estimated there must have been more than 500 dolphins in the group, including many small dolphins...

3 species of dolphins

Today was a great day for seeing dolphins. On our whale watching tour this morning we saw 3 different dolphin species: Atlantic spotted dolphins, common dolphins and bottlenose dolphins. Although we haven't seen any whales for a while, it's great to see so many different dolphin species in one tour. Here are some photos from this morning's tour:

Atlantic spotted dolphin

Watching Atlantic spotted dolphins

Bottlenose dolphin

This afternoon we were able to observe the dolphins again. This time we also had a swimming tour which was really great, as our clients got to swim with a very inquisitive group of 12 or 13 bottlenose dolphins.

Common dolphins!!!

Over the past few days we have been seeing many groups of common dolphins. It's been a few days since we have een with whales, but the common dolphins have always been great to watch, making our tours worthwhile. We have been seeing very large groups of at least a few hundred common dolphins. Yesterday we saw a group together with a large number of seabirds, presumably feeding together at the surface. Today we saw the common dolphins travelling, which was great to watch as they all came leaping out of the waves together. There has never been a dull moment watching these common dolphins that we are able to view here year round. Here are some photos from the past two days:

Our latest sightings

Over the past few days we have had a mixture of sea conditions, but we have still managed to go out on several very good whale watching and dolphin swimming tours. Since Tuesday's big storm we managed to return to the sea this past weekend and again this morning. This morning the sea was a bit rough, but we were lucky to have a large group of common dolphins close to shore, just outside of Ponta Delgada. Our other recent sightings include a group of sperm whales (on the morning of the 29th), pilot whales (on the mornings of the 30th of September and the 1st of October) and several groups of Atlantic spotted dolphins, bottlenose dolphins and common dolphins. Here are some photos from these recent tours:

Sperm whales seen in the morning on the 29th

Pilot whales (mother and calf) seen on the 30th

Bottlenose dolphins (photographed on the 30th) swimming very close to our boats

Celebração do Dia Mundial do Mar com a Futurismo!!

Dia 29 de Setembro: Dia Mundial do Mar
Este dia foi celebrado através de uma acção de Responsabilidade Social dinamizada pela APSM em parceria com a Futurismo. A Associação de Portos dos Açores efectuou o convite para a participação neste evento à turma do 4º ano da EBIJ Santa Clara que veio acompanhada pelo professor António Barreto.

Para dar início a esta experiência, foi feito um briefing explicativo em como a caça da baleia foi a actividade primária na região relativa ao contacto com mamíferos marinhos e como se desenrolava essa mesma actividade e que técnicas foram reaproveitas para a observação de cetáceos.

Seguidamente foram descritas as principais espécies observadas na região ao longo do ano para que as crianças entrassem em contacto mais próximo com as baleias e golfinhos que habitam as nossas águas. Ao longo da apresentação foram esclarecidas todas as dúvidas que foram surgindo, garantindo a compreensão por parte de todos os meninos de todos os assuntos abordados.

Antes de embarcarmos garantimos que todos os meninos e monitores estivessem preparados para a chuva eminente e tivessem todo o equipamento obrigatório a bordo e lá fomos!!

Uma passagem pelo ilhéu de Vilafranca do campo constituiu uma oportunidade ideal para abordar estas crianças sobre a importância da conservação do meio ambiente e das espécies habitantes da nossa região, assuntos sobre os quais as crianças estão actualmente mais cientes. De facto, são as crianças as que se mostram mais alertas em relação a medidas a executar no dia-a-dia, tentando incutir essas medidas nas próprias famílias ( reciclagem, poupança de água e electricidade, etc.).

Um dia diferente e apelativo para estas crianças que se mostraram extremamente atentas a tudo o que se falou, curiosas em saber como eram encontrados os animais, a que distâncias é que podem ser observados, a que velocidades nadam e até que profundidade mergulham, etc..

A repetir definitivamente numa próxima oportunidade!!

Spectacular weather in São Miguel today: gale force winds with gusts up to 45 knots and swells up to 6m in height.. obviously not whalewatching weather but quite impressive all the same! We've been hiding in the office, hoping the water doesn't rise any higher. Time to catch up on the paperwork and photo ID catalogues for the cetaceans we photograph each day!

Tempo espectacular em São Miguel hoje: ventos fortes até 45 nós e ondas até 6m de altura.. claramente não é o tempo ideal para whalewatching mas muito impressionante! Temos estado escondidos no escritório, esperando que a água não suba mais. Tempo para pôr em dia a papelada e actualizar a foto ID dos cetáceos a que tirámos fotos cada dia!

An unexpected fin whale

A fin whale this afternoon!! Quite an unusual sighting for this time of year, although it may be one of the first of our sightings as the baleen whales migrate back south from their northerly summer feeding grounds. The most common time to see them here is during the springtime. This individual was a juvenile, and spent the afternoon feeding amid Atlantic spotted dolphins, great shearwaters, Cory's shearwaters, and yellow legged gulls. An unexpected treat for passengers aboard our fibreglass boat "Song of Whales"!

We had another great day on the sea today. Throughout the day we saw many sperm whales, and the sea conditions were excellent. We also had encounters with common dolphins, spotted dolphins and bottlenose dolphins. Here is a photo of one of the sperm whales we saw this afternoon:

Summer is still here

The last two days we have been really lucky with the weather and our sightings. The sky has been clear and we have had calm waters, making it much easier for our whale watching and dolphin swimming tours. During these last two days we have been seeing different groups of sperm whales as they pass our island. Both this morning and yesterday morning the sperm whales were feeding, so we got to see several of the whales raising their tails to go on their deep feeding dives. Yesterday socialising behaviour was also seen: in the afternoon least four whales were seen together at the surface. We currently have our afternoon whale watching tour on the sea, who knows what they may be lucky enough to see.

Sperm whales: Mother and calf

Sperm whale

Our dolphin sightings have also been great. This morning we spent some time with a large group of common dolphins while yesterday we saw four different dolphin species (bottlense dolphins, common dolphins, Atlantic spotted dolphins and Risso's dolphins). These photos show some of our more special dolphin moments from yesterday:

Watching a group of common dolphinsOne of our friendly resident bottlenose dolphinsRisso's dolphin leaping out of the water

Today was another one of those days that we could only go to the sea in the morning, as the wind picked up too much for our afternoon tours. Still we managed to get a good tour in. Our whale watchers and dolphin swimmers got to enjoy some time with a large friendly group of common dolphins. This is just one of the dolphins that was leaping alongside our boats:

This is just one of the many species that we can see here in the Azores. Lately we have also been seeing many Atlantic spotted dolphins and bottlenose dolphins, as well as pilot whales and sperm whales. One of our recent passangers, Ida Eriksson, has recently been on 6 tours with us, and was lucky enough to have some great encounters with many of these species. Click here to see Ida's blog that shows some photos and videos of these encounters. Thank you Ida.

One more note for today : a recommendation to check out the blog of Doris Thomas who visited us recently in Pico and has sent us the link to some of her incredible photos. Click here to see some great above and underwater action from dolphins and sperm whales, and read about her experiences whalewatching and dolphin swimming with Futurismo.

An interesting morning with big groups of bottlenose dolphins, Atlantic spotted dolphins and Risso's dolphins to observe! The Risso's dolphins were especially interesting as they were repeatedly jumping and tailslapping.. perhaps some examples of the aggressive behaviour between individuals which results in the scratches and scarring on adult Rissos. These scars are thought to be caused by the teeth of fellow dolphins (Rissos have up to 14 teeth on the lower jaw), but also by their main prey, squid. They are born a dark grey but gradually become paler with age, with this scarring making the older individuals appear almost entirely white, especially on the head. This extensive pattern of scars and scratches means individuals can be identified using photo ID techniques, mostly focussing on the dorsal fins. So far they have not been as well studied as some other species of dolphin, due to their their timid nature and preference for deep oceanic waters. Click here for more information on the species and some great photos on the website of the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society.

Finally we have beautful calm seas again! The wind of the last few days has finally tailed off and we went out this morning to sunny calm conditions with great visibility. Big groups of bottlenose, common and Atlantic spotted dolphins awaited us with plenty of jumps and acrobatics - and the water was clear enough to see the dolphins curiously swimming under the boats and bow-riding beneath the waves. This afternoon pilot whales also joined in the fun.

We've also been signing the Avaaz petition to help bring an end to bottom-trawling fisheries. This is the most destructive method of fishing worldwide; nets are dragged across thousands of miles of seabed, destroying everything in their path. Not only are the target species caught in the giant nets, but also everything else to be found in the nets' path which means an enormous amount of unnecessary bycatch which is killed but useless to the fishing industry. This is one of most important reasons to ensure that, if you eat fish, you know how it has been caught and avoid fish that has been caught using these unbelievably unsustainable methods. Please join us in signing this petition to the UN to voice our opinions - bottom-trawling is something that must stop if we want to continue seeing marine wildlife in our oceans!

One of our recent guests, Patrick Vertongen, has kindly sent us the link to some of his fantastic photos from his trips with us in the Azores... click here to have a look at some of his inspiring photography from here and around the world. Something for the rest of us to aim for maybe!

BBC blue planet feeding frenzy

A great dolphin swimming trip this morning! Our clients swam amongst a feeding frenzy of dolphins, birds and tuna. The Cory's shearwaters and great shearwaters are proficient divers and are great at diving down deep to feed on fish like mackerel and sardines which the dolphins corral into tight bait balls. This feeding association is well established between the dolphins and cagarros (as the Cory's shearwaters are known here in the Azores), and sometimes we are lucky enough to find ourselves right in the middle of it with a mask and snorkel! The incredible diving capacity of these shearwaters was captured by the BBC during the filming of Blue Planet and can look something like this.

A breaching sperm whale calf was the highlight of our trips this morning! The young whale jumped out of the water 7 or 8 times in a row, entertaining all our passengers with its playfulness. A few of us were lucky enough to get the moment on film..

Common dolphins and spotted dolphins this morning! Unfortunately we've had to cancel our afternoon trips due to the sea conditions, but luckily for the passengers who chose to book our full day trip including the afternoon at the Islet of Vila France the sun is still shining there.. The calm protected waters of the old volcanic crater means they're enjoying swimming and snorkelling while the waves increase outside of the islet!

August sightings

As it's the final day of August we at Futurismo have been looking back over our sightings for the month.. see below which species have visited us in the Azores and how often they've been seen. Our most prolific visitor, the migratory Atlantic spotted dolphin, has been seen on 93% of the days we've been at sea this month! It's a species we see a lot of at this time of year, usually large groups with plenty of calves swimming close alongside the adults. Sperm whales have been sighted 60% of the days this month, and fin whales made it onto the list which is unusual for this time of year!

To sum up our sightings this month (percentage of days we sighted each species):

• 
  
  Atlantic spotted dolphin (Stenella frontalis): 93%



• 
  
  Sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus): 60%



• 
  
  Common dolphin (Delphinus delphis): 60%



• 
  
  Bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus): 57%



• 
  
  Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus): 30%



• 
  
  Pilot whale (Globicephela macrorhyncus): 20%



• 
  
  Striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba): 17%



• 
  
  Beaked whale (Mesoplodon species): 10%



• 
  
  Fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus): 7%

Here's to many more..