A Fantastic Day With a Look At Our Marine Big 5, 22 November 2019
Written by November 23 2019
What a spectacular day of sightings! We were so lucky to have encountered the Marine big 5 on our first trip as well as a look at two different species of whales on our second trip of the day. With great looks at our beautiful Bronze Whaler Shark, the endangered Indian Ocean Humpback Dolphin, our buzzing Cape Fur Seal colony, the small endangered African Penguin as well as a surprise visit from a young Humpback Whale and its mother travelling through our bay. The shy Brydes Whale was a great sight on the second trip and we got some looks at this beautiful creature. Today was superb and we hope that we have more of these wonderful views of our wildlife.
Picking up Kelp to show our guests this interesting plant
Our beautiful Indian Ocean Humpback Dolphin
We were very lucky to be able to see this endangered species
A beautiful look at the tail
The Humpback Whale mother and its young one
The Humpback Whale dorsal fin
Whale tail
These Humpback Whales always leave us in awe
Our Humpback Whale was giving us a show of its tail
Some great looks at the Brydes Whale, its not often that we are able to see the head like this
Another great shot of our Brydes Whale
The beautiful Bronze Whaler Shark
Some great views of these animals
Geyser Rock and our colony of Cape Fur Seals
Our Cape Fur Seals stick their fins in the air to cool down
Dyer Island
Our guests getting a look at our endangered African Penguin
What species did we see today?
Bronze Whaler Shark Bronze Whaler Shark
The Bronze whaler (also known as Copper sharks) here in Kleinbaai are very curious and interactive. These sharks eat mostly fish, with sardines being one of their favourites.
Indian Ocean Humpback Dolphin Indian Ocean Humpback Dolphin
Humpback dolphins are an endangered species, with small populations living very close to shore, typically in water less than 25m deep and an average home range of 120km. Their proximity to land makes these animals particularly vulnerable to human influence.
African Penguin African Penguin
As one of only 17 penguin species left in the world (and the only one on the african continent), the african penguin often breed in offshore colonies, such as Dyer Island.
Cape Cormorant Cape Cormorant
One of the most famous species of Cormorant in the Western Cape, the Cape Cormorant is well known for it's beautiful turquoise eye and impressive size.
Cape fur seal Cape fur seal
With a local population of 60,000, it's no wonder our guests capture so many photographs of these wonderfully playful marine mammals.
Humpback Whale Humpback Whale
One of the best-known whale species, they are renowned for their acrobatic behaviour and complex melodious song as well as extremely long flippers and are a special favourite of Dyer Island Cruises guests and crew alike.
Brydes Whale Brydes Whale
The mysterious Bryde's whales visit the Dyer Island area throughout the year, with most sightings occurring during summer into winter.
