We enjoyed a fantastic and nautical day out on the Pacific ocean! We had some increased swells that made for a bumpy but fun day! As soon as we set out of the Mission Bay jetties, we found a pod of ~10 Pacific white-sided dolphins. They were corralling fish into a bait ball. Many birds took notice and began to dive down and feed on the same school of fish. We continued to the drop-off and found a spread-out pod of ~50 Short-beaked Common dolphins! They seemed to be slowly headed to the the NW. They checked us out by bow-riding the Privateer. Many even porpoised and breached around us. We continued out to about 9-miles from shore, our furthest point to the west. We picked up a couple Mylar balloons and began our journey home. We found another dense pod of ~60 Short-beaked Common dolphins. They eagerly raced to our bow, and surfed in our wake. On our way in, we found a handful of Long-beaked Common dolphins too!
Trash/Recyclables: TWO Mylar balloons successfully retrieved!
We will be offline for a couple of days, waiting out the bumpy seas. Our next scheduled trip will be Tuesday, come join us then!
Naturalist,Vanessa
December 14, 2019
