MORE EXOTIC BLACKFISH IN SAN DIEGO?! 🐋🌅
PILOT WHALES made an appearance on our sunset cruise!
What else does this extra spicy El Niño have in store for us this fall?
We headed out to barren seas today, with barely a peep on the community radio. Windy, choppy conditions had us searching completely on our own.
About halfway through the trip, we turned east and started spotting little dark blips on the horizon. Not the steady whitewater of Common Dolphins. Not the big, joyful leaps of Bottlenose Dolphins.
Just stubby dark shapes appearing… then disappearing.
The energy in the wheelhouse was ELECTRIC.
It was 90° with 80% humidity, and the whole crew looked like freshly plucked chickens. Goosebumps everywhere.
Then it happened.
We were surrounded.
Everywhere we looked, pilot whales.
Spouts erupting in the golden sunset light. Massive dark backs surfacing all around us. No matter where you stood on the boat, there was a pilot whale nearby, checking you out, looking up at the boat, then slipping beneath us into the deep.
For 45 minutes, we were completely immersed in their world.
Pilot whales are among the most intelligent cetaceans in the ocean, with one of the largest brain-to-body ratios in the animal kingdom. You can see that intelligence in the way they gather before a dive, socialize with one another, and coordinate their hunts.
We stood in absolute awe as these incredible animals surrounded us in every direction.
What’s tomorrow got in store? We can only dream – and book a day on the ocean ASAP!
Naturalist, Alison
