Marine Big 5 Daily Blog 26 March
Written by March 26 2025
Whale Watching near Cape Town, South Africa Welcome to Gansbaai, home of the Marine Big 5.
Trip Summary 26 March 2025:
What a great day at sea and once again we found the Marine Big 5! Our first sighting was almost in the middle of the bay with a pod of common dolphins. They stayed in this area for a long time, and we crossed their path again later on during our tour. After having had some close-up looks at the bow riding dolphins, we moved on to see the penguins on Dyer Island and we visited the Cape fur seal colony as well. On our way into deeper water, we saw a spout but weren’t able at first to get a good look at the Bryde’s whale. Only after we visited the shark cage diving boat could we see the whale surfacing a few times. Before we were heading back into Kleinbaai harbour after a great time at sea we saw a bottlenose dolphin.
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What species did we see today?
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.
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.
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.
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.
Bottlenose Dolphin Bottlenose Dolphin
At present there are two recognized species of bottlenose dolphin, and in some cases, both species can be found in the same area. The two species are the common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), and the Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin (T. aduncus). In addition, there is a great deal of variation in colouration, diet and behaviour. The difference between the common bottlenose and Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin are subtle, but the common bottlenose dolphin generally larger and more robust with a slight darker colouration.
