Sun and Beautiful Sightings, 18 October 2019
Written by October 18 2019
This morning started off beautifully with the sun shining brightly and our crew ready to set sail. Not long after we left the harbour, we got our first sightings of the endangered Humpback Dolphin, which is always a great excitement for everyone. We then headed to the shallows to see if we could catch a glimpse of a shark and were lucky enough to be able to see the beautifully coloured Bronze Whaler Sharks around the cage diving boats. While we headed out to Pearly beach, we encountered a juvenile African penguin and a Giant Petrel flying overhead after which we came across our gentle giants, the Southern Right Whales. One of the mother and calf pairs is quite unique as the mother has a brindle colouration which occurs in 4% of the population and are generally born male. Our seal population was entertaining as always and showed off around the boat with their diving and acrobatics in and out the water. The afternoon trips were just as fortunate to see 4 of out marine big 5 including a sighting of a Great White shark on our second trip.
Photos from today
Indian Ocean humpback dolphins
Indian Ocean humpback dolphin
African penguins in the water
The head of a curious juvenile Southern right whale
A rare brindle female Southern right whale
A brindle mother with her juvenile
Humpback whale close to Dyer Island
Humpback whale
Indian Ocean humpback dolphins ion the second trip
Southern right whales rolling in the swell
A juvenile Southern right whale close to the beach
The huge head of an adult Southern right whale
Cape fur seals playing in shark alley
Cape fur seals on Geyser rock
Cape cormorants
Shark cage diving with Bronze whaler sharks
Bronze whaler shark
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.
Great white sharks Great white sharks
Gracious, beautiful, misunderstood - three words used by guests of Dyer Island Cruises after witnessing South Africa's most infamous marine species: The Great White Shark.
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.
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.
Southern Right Whale Southern Right Whale
Southern right whales attract thousands of visitors every year to experience these gentle giants off the South African coast.
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 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.
