On 08/09/2019 at 12:30 am, Anthony skippered the Algoa Bay Marine Vessel and excited Guests on a Whale and Dolphin spotting trip to Cape Recife, leaving from GQDSAC at 12:30 pm.
Our trip on Sunday Afternoon started full of promise as reports came in from various sources having spotted Whales off of Cape Recife, Common Dolphins surfing into the bay, Orca’s at Anchorage 2 and Humpbacks also at Anchorage 2.
The expected weather prediction was for absolute calm in the Cape Recife area – ideal for us to start our journey and view the Whales, with a caveat that should we get confirmation and position of the Killer Whales we would beat it at a rate of knots across Algoa Bay in search of these most magnificent of creatures.
BUT, today was family day in the Bay – whilst the citizens of Gqeberha descended in family groups onto our beachfront and enjoyed family time in the sun we were replete with wonder at the number of Humpback Whale family groups cruising south past Algoa Bay.
When we finally decided to call it a day we had counted 5 family groups of three all rounding Cape Recife on their way home.
Add to that a set of Whale Breaches and individuals and we can give thanks for the apparent healthy state of the whale population.
Unfortunately the number of dolphins to be seen was a big fat zero – allowing us to nod sagely at each other and remark that the Killer Whales were definitely in the Bay as the dolphins were hiding away from everyone.
A couple of seals, a raft of penguins and some Gannets dive bombing fish around us ended off a beautiful day on the sea.
The following cetaceans were spotted:
| Time | Latitude | Longitude | Species Code | Adults | Calves | Behaviour |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13:15 | 34°00’52.1″S | 25°44’05.9″E | HBW | 2 | 1 | Swimming |
| 13:45 | -33.9719166 | 25.6273129,12 | HBW | 2 | 1 | Swimming |
| 14:15 | 34°03’53.5″S | 25°43’18.6″E | HBW | 2 | Breaching | |
| 14:30 | 34°02’18.5″S | 25°43’26.9″E | HBW | 2 | 1 | Swimming |
| 15:10 | 34°01’05.0″S | 25°42’46.1″E | HBW | 2 | 1 | Swimming |
| 15:35 | 34°01’50.3″S | 25°42’29.5″E | HBW | 2 | 1 | Swimming |
Legend: SRW – Southern Right Whale | HBW – Humpback Whale | BRY – Brydes Whale | COM – Common Dolphin | BOT – Bottlenose Dolphin | HUMP – Humpback Dolphin | ORCA – Killer Whale/Orca.
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