Friday was our last full day of data collection, with session #50 completed for 2023. It was a very dolphin social session with relatively icky underwater visibility. The dolphins were very playful, from above water observations. Alita played everywhere with every conceivable object available – sea grass, seaweed, mangrove pods, Buzz, etc. There was lots of play underwater too. After breakfast, Kathleen broke down the MVA and began the cleaning and packing process. Manon and Savanna went snorkeling to West End while Bill did both morning dives: the first was the Aguilar with a spotted eel at the bottom and the second was to spooky channel. The latter lived up to its name because of the somewhat silty water. Manon and Savanna saw two spotted eagle rays and two giant jacks. The seas were glassy calm and there was no wind, which made today especially hot! The afternoon was packing filled but also included a shore snorkel that allowed views of big barracudas, big pufferfish, and three big French angelfish and two large rainbow parrotfish (but not Shane’s giant fish). We took the MVA back to leave in the trainers’ room and said bye to the interns, trainers, and Teri and Eldon. Tomorrow is travel and we wrapped up the evening with a yummy meal and a glass of champagne in celebration of this month of dolphins!
A summary of this past month in the field will feature in tomorrow’s blog.
Cheers
Kathleen, Manon, Savanna & Bill