A Magical, Misty day On the Ocean, 29 April 2019
We got to see 4 members of the Marine Big 5 out at sea today...
Written by Jax Bath, April 30 2019
Daily Snaps.
We had a pod of around 4 Indian Ocean Humpback Dolphins, which included Fingers. Fingers is one of our more iconic animals.
A calf coming up after its mother.
We found the dolphins just outside the harbour.
Can you see the water droplet falling off the penguins chin?
This little bird was very relaxed, letting us get some lovely views as he took a bath.
Cormorants in the mist, always one of my favourite sightings.
These Cape Cormorants where all heading out fishing.
These birds are the kings and queens of energy conservation, flying one behind each other and often just above the water to save energy.
two Northern Giant Petrels in the mist, can you see the red tip to the bill? Your Southern Giant Petrel has a green tip to the bill.
Another Northern Giant Petrel sitting on the water, we had several of these large scavenging birds around, waiting for the dead seal pups to wash out of Shark Alley.
In South Africa, when something in very cute, we say it is “nunu”. Isn’t this little seal “nunu”?
Seals in the mist.
Coming in for a closer look at Dream Catcher.
A not so happy looking seal.
A pup below the Prince Port.
Some endangered Bank Cormorants breeding on Geyser rock. the Cormorant on the far left has white on his rump, indicating that it is ready to breed.
An aesthetic seal.
Enjoying the seals in the mist.
What species did we see today?
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.
