San Diego Whale Sightings — Updated Daily!

See what our naturalists have spotted during our last 7 trips in Mission Bay and off the coast of San Diego.

36

Whales Spotted

2,110

Dolphins Spotted

7

Different Species Spotted

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Today's Sightings Summary

Detailed Sightings Log - August 4, 2026

Tour Species Count Behavior
Morning TourFin Whale6Surface ActiveBreaching

Detailed Sightings Log - August 4, 2026

Tour Species Count Behavior
Morning TourFin Whale2BreathingSurface ActiveDivingRafting
Morning TourOffshore Bottlenose Dolphin50HuntingPlayingFeedingTail SlappingBow Riding

Detailed Sightings Log - August 3, 2026

Tour Species Count Behavior
Sunset TourFin Whale5Surface Active
Sunset TourShort-beaked Common Dolphin100Stampede
Sunset TourMola mola (Sunfish)1Breaching

Detailed Sightings Log - August 3, 2026

Tour Species Count Behavior
Morning TourShort-beaked Common Dolphin200StampedeJumping
Morning TourFin Whale5BreathingSurface Active

Detailed Sightings Log - August 2, 2026

Tour Species Count Behavior
Sunset TourOffshore Bottlenose Dolphin30ForagingSurfingSurface ActiveJumpingChin SlappingTail SlappingCow/Calf Pair
Sunset TourFin Whale3BreathingJumpingDivingRafting

Detailed Sightings Log - August 2, 2026

Tour Species Count Behavior
Mid-day TourOffshore Bottlenose Dolphin50MuggingSurface Active
Mid-day TourShort-beaked Common Dolphin350ForagingStampedeHunting

Detailed Sightings Log - August 2, 2026

Tour Species Count Behavior
Morning TourBlue Whale2Stampede
Morning TourRisso's Dolphin30BreathingSleepingMugging
Morning TourShort-beaked Common Dolphin200SurfingHunting

Recent Sightings

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  • All

Fin-cident At Sea

6 fin whales! 6! Fin! Whales! This week we’ve been seeing not only a huge number of…

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The Streak Continues!

We had a fantastic time spotting fin-backed whales on our early Tuesday trip aboard the Privateer. About…

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Fins fins and more fins!

This evening we had the privilege to hang out with 5 fin whales!! With another couple in…

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FIN-SPIRATIONAL, FIN-TASTIC, UNFORGETA-TAIL

The day was so magical, I had to make up words to describe the wildlife encounters the…

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To be among giants.

The Privateer rounded out a scorcher of a weekend with a hot streak of finding multiple large…

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A Dolphin Day Out!

Privateer headed out this afternoon for another epic dolphin day. Not just the 50 bottlenose dolphins but…

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Our Typical Route

While our route varies with sightings, we typically follow a similar course near known feeding areas.

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This Year's Stats

Total: 20,957 dolphins and 332 whales.

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Departing daily from Mission Bay.

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