Marine Big 5 Daily Blog 17 December
Written by December 17 2022
Whale Watching near Cape Town, South Africa Welcome to Gansbaai, home of the Marine Big 5.
Trip Summary 17 December 2022:
Trip 1
A fantastic day on the sea with some wonderful marine wildlife encounters. We left Kleinbaai harbour nice and early and just moments after departure we were greeted with the site of a small pod of Endangered Indian Ocean Humpback dolphins, made up of adults and juveniles, the group approached close to the vessel allowing us a up-close view of these somewhat usually shy dolphin species. Once we left the Humpback dolphins we made our way into the Shallows, an area the shark cage diving industry use for their activity, where we met our sister company Marine Dynamics, who were busy with a number of Bronze whaler sharks around the boat, allowing our guests the chance to see these sharks as they came to the surface. The trip then led into the deeper waters in the hopes of encountering some more marine life of which we got extremely lucky with a large bait ball and a pod of Common dolphins numbering close to 200 individuals. We followed alongside these dolphins for some time as they moved, darting in and out of the water, coming close to the boat to play in the wake. The trip was finished off with a visit to the Islands to see the Cape fur seal colony of Geyser Rock and the Endangered African penguins of Dyer Island. A fantastic trip, a big thank you to all our guests that joined us today, we hope you enjoyed your Marine Big 5 experience!
Tripadvisor – https://bit.ly/2YZ0jDR
Google – https://g.page/r/Caej8uYZYnR8EBE/review
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/WhaleWatchSA
What species did we see today?
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.
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.
Common Dolphin Common Dolphin
With an 'hourgalss' patch on either side and aerial activity the common dolphin is an agile and majestic species, that may easily reach a speed of 40km/h.
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.
