Category: Bimini

Monday I was able to join Sea Crest’s visiting researcher and her class in search of dolphins. The seas were not as calm as forecasted, but we did see dolphins fairly early in the day and for quite awhile. We knew right away that we were observing bottlenose dolphins, but I found their bowriding and spyhopping behavior strange… I then noticed the very white patch on one individual’s peduncle, a characteristic common among offshore (aka oceanic) bottlenose dolphins.

Sunday’s trip with Bimini Undersea was filled with friendly, happy guests, all eager to see the Atlantic spotted dolphins of Bimini. Unlike much of last week, the seas were calm and the skies were clear. Our day brought us quite a few dolphin sightings, including three separate mother/calf pairs (1st: unknown mother, 2nd: likely Niecey – #48, 3rd: suspected, but not confirmed Leslie – #80). We were able to see two of these pairs under water. It always feels like an extra special privilege to see such young dolphins.

Friday began with a farewell to the remaining two DCP summer interns. Alexis & Sabena departed Bimini this morning and I’m already missing their assistance! For me, I had to prep for an afternoon dolphin trip – it seemed the skies were finally going to stay clear. Well, not only did the skies stay clear, but the seas relaxed to a wonderful calm state. We departed Sea Crest Hotel & Marina shortly after 15:00 and were pleased to be in the company of Atlantic spotted dolphins within an hour.

The DCP team split up between two boat trips again on Tuesday. It has been so exciting to be able to collect data on two different boats on the same day this year! Kel left the dock early at 11:17 and although no dolphins were sighted, the passengers were able to enjoy a sunny day at sea and a couple of swim breaks. As soon as the group returned to the dock, Al and Kel turned right back around to make another attempt at retrieving the SM2M PAM device. Previous attempts were thwarted by strong currents.

After several eventful boat trip days the DCP team has switched researching in the field to processing data indoors as the remnants of Tropical Storm Emily passed by. TS Emily was forecasted to be in full force but thankfully dissipated into a little bit of wind and today, a whole lot of rain, that kept us inside. We may be low on sunshine and good weather but we are well supplied with data! Sabena and Alexis continued working on data projects such as the bottlenose photo-ID catalog and sighting data from the previous string of boat trips.

Thursday was an early day for Sabena as she made the quick journey to South Bimini for a tour at the Bimini Biological Field Station, aka the Shark Lab. She had the opportunity to see their research facility, talk to a few interns, and learn about their involvement with local conservation issues and research. Sabena really enjoyed the discussions with fellow marine biologists and the chance to expand her knowledge beyond dolphin research.

Wednesday began with a DCP talk to the Sea Crest passengers. They asked wonderful and insightful questions and we really enjoyed our time with them: thank you! In the afternoon we headed out for our dolphin trips and yet again, DCP was split between two trips. Kel headed out early at 13:21 and guests enjoyed a snorkel at “3 Sisters” rocks. From there we went in search of dolphins and we didn’t need to search for long! We came upon a group of six bottlenose at 15:35 and got two dolphin swims, one long and one short.

Tuesday began with a talk to Bimini Undersea’s guests. What a wonderful group of people! Thank you for your interest in DCP and Bimini’s dolphins. The dolphin trips were yet again double duty with the DCP team split into two groups. Sabena and Alexis left the dock first at 15:09. There were many sightings of flying fish throughout the dolphin trip! The afternoon continued into the evening as we headed back with the realization that we probably would not have any dolphin sightings.

Monday’s dolphin trips once again split up the DCP team. We are so grateful to the two Bimini dolphin operators who donate space to us. And the summer internship program allows DCP to be in two places at once! Kel headed out at 13:40 and the passengers enjoyed a nice relaxing snorkel stop at The Bimini Road (aka Atlantis) and then resumed looking for dolphins two hours later. Kel was lucky enough to coordinate a swim break with the location of the SM2M unit (see Sat 30 July’s post for details).

On Sunday, the DCP team split up for double duty as Kel headed out with Sea Crest Hotel & Marina just minutes before Sabena and Alexis headed out with Bimini Undersea.