Dolphin Style!
… the call assured that everyone was awake and donning gear for a snorkel. Peppie had the dinghy ready so we did not have to stay close to our anchored main vessel. The current was not that strong but having the freedom to go with the dolphins was great. This encounter was with 7 spotted dolphins and lasted for an hour and 5 minutes! A great way to start any day. And, even better, we recognized some of the dolphins. A few were very young juveniles we'd seen earlier this summer. We also saw #39 (Doubledot) and quite likely #108. I last saw #108 in 1995 as a juvenile with only a few spots. Now she is almost an adult with a calf of her own. I know I have said this before but this summer I truly feel as though I am watching family members grow, develop, and 'leave the next' (so to speak). In the afternoon, we saw a group of subadult and adult males. Three more friends – #103 (Echo), #112 (Mia), and #114 (Concordia). The last time we saw #114 was in 1997 and he was a juvenile, now he's an adult covered in spots. Bill has several photos of #114 as do I. His dorsal fin was scalloped by fishing line. These males paid little attention to us today but 3 juvenile males circled us and rubbed against one another in the sand. Really neat behavior to watch. Maybe they are setting up friendships for adulthood. Today was a long day but also a very satisfying and good one. And the seas flattened out leaving us only a rolling, long-wavelengthed ground swell. Cheers Kathleen