On Friday, Kel headed out for DCP’s 55th dolphin trip of 2015! It’s been a great season and DCP is so grateful to have the assistance of Kali & Ellyne, who have been dedicated to office work this week. It really does pile up!
The boat departed just after 1430 and just minutes before the clock struck 1700 we saw two young spotted dolphins. They were keen to surf the waves and ride the bow of the boat, so we kept on eye on them while scanning the area for more individuals.
Saturday was Kel’s last day with Bimini Adventures’ film crew and Ellyne & Kali enjoyed a much deserved day off. Initially, the boat stayed docked for a bit as Kel gave an interview in the sunshine. But, soon it was time to search for dolphins. The seas were not as calm as we’d like and we kept one eye out for dolphins and one eye out for squalls.
On Thursday, it was another Bimini Adventures dolphin trip for Kel and more data processing for Ellyne & Kali. It was a very busy day on the water with far more boats than usual searching for dolphins. The crowded conditions reminded Kel of long-term concerns regarding the impact of boat and swimmer interactions on the dolphins.
Kel headed out early on Wednesday for some work with Bimini Adventures’ film crew. Soon she was back on land, where Kali & Ellyne are continuing their week of data processing – they are getting lots done! In the afternoon, it was back to sea for Kel and she and the crew were rewarded with an early and long spotted dolphin sighting. The action started with a group of six, seven, no, eight dolphins! The mixed age group included un-named #75 (and his look-a-like), a known, but to-be-catalogued young juvenile and Leslie (#80).
This week, Kali & Ellyne will be focused on data processing, spending their days on land. Kel is joining Bimini Adventures, and a visiting film crew, each afternoon. On Tuesday, effort began at 14:18, and within an hour, we were observing a group of four young bottlenose dolphins. Kel definitely recognized some of the dolphins, but it will be Ellyne & Kali’s hard work with the DCP bottlenose photo-ID catalog that will help us confirm their identities. One has a short right pectoral fin and another a short left pectoral fin.
On Friday we were happy to see Kel back on the boat and feeling a bit better. The Bimini Adventures’ course and DCP had a wonderful day starting right away with about five bottlenose dolphins sighted near the harbor exit. They were found close to the boat in shallow water and disappeared after surfing another boat’s wake! We went on and continued our searching in the deeper water. It was a warm day so we took a refreshing swim break and then returned to our dolphin search.
We soon sighted six spotted dolphins including two calves.
Wednesday was a busy day for DCP interns Kali and Ellyne. With their fearless leader Kel home recovering from a voice-stealing cold, they stepped up to take over the day’s duties. First on the list was to give a presentation to a new group of students aboard the Coral Reef II, participating in Shedd Aquarium’s high school marine biology program. The students were highly engaged in the lecture asking many questions as the presentation went on.
On Sunday we had very calm placid water as we started the day in the sunshine. The calm water aided us in seeing dorsal fins in the distance and we had our first sighting quickly - only a half an hour after leaving the dock! We first sighted eight spotted dolphins, including, we think, Niecey (#48) and un-named #102.
On Monday the sea was again tranquil and calm. We began the boat trip with a snorkel session at Shell Beach. The students saw a stingray and many colorful fish as well as a cuttlefish (or reef squid?). We even saw a turtle when we started to search for dolphins. Then in the distance we saw dorsal fins and approached them. We counted 17 spotted dolphins; in this group may have been un-named #75, Freckles (#15), Milo (#96) and un-named #102, but we’ll need to review video and photos to be sure.
Saturday was our sixth day in a row out with Bimini Adventures. While Kel has stayed back on land the last few days, Ellyne & Kali been having a great week so far having seen many spotted dolphins and being able to identify individuals from DCP catalog. The students on the boat were also happy about all the encounters they’d had with the spotteds this past week but were getting curious about the bottlenose dolphins they know are around. So, the group couldn’t help but hope to find some bottlenose dolphins.