Another Home Run! Marine Big 5 Daily Blog 9 June
Written by June 9 2022
Whale Watching near Cape Town, South Africa Welcome to Gansbaai, home of the Marine Big 5.
Trip Summary 09 June 2022:
Our incredible luck continued today! Less than 5 minutes out of the harbour we came across a pod of endangered Indian Ocean Humpback dolphins with a young calf in the mix. As we continued on we came across four different rafts of endangered African Penguins cruising on the water’s surface. We then ventured towards our shark cage diving vessel where we were able to witness some beautiful Bronze Whaler shark action. Next, we headed into deeper water and exercised a little patience while searching for any whales in the area. Our searching was rewarded when we saw an incredible pair of Humpback whales! We stayed with this pair for some time and they put on quite a show for us with numerous instances of fluking. After departing from these whales we headed to our island systems. In Shark Alley, our ever-playful Cape Fur seals delighted our guests and crew with their antics thus, ticking off the fifth and final species of our Marine Big 5. Upon taking a closer look at Dyer Island we were able to spot some African penguins amongst Cape Cormorants, White-Breasted Cormorants and Kelp Gulls. As we left Dyer Island we also saw a group of Giant Petrels using the water as a runway. As we began making our way back to the harbour we were surprised by a fantastically calm Mola Mola (Sunfish) predating on Box Jellyfish. After leaving the Mola Mola behind our impressive winter visitors, the Sub Antarctic Skuas, escorted us the rest of the way, making for a perfect end to a perfect Marine Big 5 trip!
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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.
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.
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.
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.
Bank Cormorant Bank Cormorant
Often enjoying a broad diet including klipfish, rock lobster and more, the increasing rarety of the Bank Cormorant makes every moment we see them even more special.
Cape Gannet Cape Gannet
Well documented for their aireal displays, experiences with with the famous Cape Gannet are always breath taking, and hold a special place in every photographers portfolio.
White-breasted Cormorant White-breasted Cormorant
White-breasted Cormorant is the largest African cormorant and they have an iconic white chest, it is a favourite for many of our repeat visitors, and professional wildlife photographers.
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.
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.
