Category: Japan 2007

Calm waters and no dolphins
I had two boat trips today. The morning trip was a bust – I recorded only 3 minutes of video in 2 hours! The dolphins were out there swimming around us and spent some time riding the bow of our boat. But as soon as we jumped in ther water, they disappeared. I think they just get fed up with playing with the passengers sometimes and choose to ignore us. They always seem to enjoy the boats however. The afternoon trip was a bit more productive.

Dolphins are silly
I had a nice boat trip today – nice conditions, not too cold (finally). We ran across quite a few groups. In one rather amusing scene, #161 (Koshakure) – the one with the huge underbite – swam by me with an ENORMOUS fish in her mouth. It must have been 1 meter long or more. I am not sure what she was planning to do with it – there is no way she could swallow it without first tearing off chunks.

Another young dolphin arrives in this world IMAGE: boats at the pier

I am not sure if I am just getting old, or if the weather out here seems much colder and harsher than I remember. In my mind, I picture Mikura as a warm, humid, almost tropical island filled with sun, sandals and t-shirts. Perhaps my advanced years (early 30s) are bringing with them a touch of senility.

Tragedy
I had an uneventful boat trip this morning. The afternoon however brought some unwanted excitement. A few of the other researchers came across a group of very active dolphins during an afternoon trip. Upon investigation, the cause of the commotion was discovered: #081 (Hai-chan) was supporting the body of a dead newborn calf – likely her own. She was supporting it and trying to push it toward the surface – a behavior that young mothers often perform just after the birth of their calf in order to help the calf take its first breath.

Young moms get no rest
The wind died down, and the water was very calm this morning. Still crazy cold though. We spent an hour with a large group of dolphins milling about in the shallow waters off of Kawaguchitaki. We witnessed a group of mothers with their calves and juveniles being pursued by a group of subadult males. It wasn`t obviously hostile, but the males were most certainly pestering the young mothers. Male dolphins have been known to kill young calves as a means of inducing a reproductive state in the females, so perhaps this was their intention.

No boat trips today IMAGE: Shrimp nets

A crazy unexpected wind-storm is blowing out of the North East today, driving terrible waves up over the pier. There is no chance of boat trips, and the ferry was cancelled twice. I spent most of today fixing the camera housing – we have brand new camera equipment, and it requires a lot of careful tweaking to make sure it all fits inside the camera housing correctly.

A long session today IMAGE: Casting shrimp nets in the evening

This morning`s boat trip resulted in lots of great footage. Sekapun, a subadult female whom I`ve sighted regularly since 2005, was in good form today. We ran across her in the shallow waters near Shinkuzure. She spent at least 20 minutes in the vicinity, and spent much of that time swimming near me and the camera. Given the camera`s green finish, it has been nicknamed ‘little frog’, and it is clear that Sekapun loves little frog.

Dolphins love choppy water
I had an unexpected boat trip this morning – I had assumed that the nasty looking waves would deter the boat captains, but I had not counted on the fact that it was Saturday and a boatload (literally) of tourist had arrived on the island looking for some dolphin sightseeing action. I hitched a ride with Omouri-kun`s boat (Sirius). It is nice and sunny today, but the waves by the pier and on the west side of the island are killer.

A lazy sunny day
I slept in today (that is, until 6AM) and tried to relax a bit. Being out in the field is actually quite tiring – aside from the demands of the boat trips themselves (swimming and manhandling the giant camera), I have to spend a few hours before and after the trip preparing the equipment and entering data. I was happy to relax a bit today. I bought myself some bacon and eggs for lunch – a nice contrast to last night’s meal of fish, fish and more fish.

Two trips provides 45 minutes of dolphins! I learned today why the water is so very cold. There is an ocean current that usually passes by Mikura, bringing lovely warm water with it. But for whatever reason, this current is now traveling 100 miles away from Mikura! This anomaly occurs every few decades, and means that the water around Mikura is appreciably colder. I can attest to this fact! After two trips today I am more or less a popsicle.