Picture: Bob Richmond
At last.. some dolphins… There were sightings made on wed, thurs and friday of the last week. One group of 3 dolphins being seen on two separate days and a group of 12 on another day. Our thanks to the museum staff at Broughty Castle and also to Kath for reporting their sightings to us. It would seem that the dolphins are beginning to return on a regular basis and we hope to report more sightings soon.
The highlight of the week however was the visit to the River Tay by a rather unusual visitor. An arctic bearded seal… The Tay and surrounding areas has it’s own colonies of grey and common seals, but it is very unusual to see a bearded seal in these waters.
It was seen around 8.00am on Saturday by Bob Richmond (Head of unit, MVS Tay). Bob took some pictures of the seal and we were able to make a positive identification (Thanks to Elaine Roft).
Still nothing to shout about, but at least we have one confirmed sighting of some dolphins within the Tay Estuary.
The sighting was of 2/3 dolphins close to the horseshoe buoy at 8.00am. Thanks to the local couple who made the sighting. They live on the esplanade and have kindly agreed to note any sightings they make and pass them on to us.
The first two weeks of the monitoring program have been uneventful, in that we have not had a single sighting of the dolphins. Reports from elsewhere inform us that the dolphins are nearby, but to date we haven’t seen any within the confines of the River Tay.
We are aware of a group of five dolphins that are frequenting the coastline to the north. This particular group has some distinctive characteristics that will make identification quite easy. One of the dolphins has severe scarring to one side of its dorsal fin and another is suffering from a spinal deformity.
This quiet beginning has allowed us to extend our contact with other agencies and I’m pleased to inform you that the MVS (Maritime Volunteer Service) have agreed to keep a log of any sightings they make of the dolphins. They have also kindly agreed to pass on any photographs they take for identification purposes.
As time passes, we hope to extend the sightings network to cover the whole of the Tay Estuary.
From small beginnings….
Comments Off
After months of preparation the monitoring program set up by Crawsnest (Scotland) in agreement with Dundee City Council officially starts today 5th May 2007. Members of the Crawsnest research team will be present at Broughty Castle collecting data on the dolphins as they return to the river.
The project will entail the shore-based monitoring of the dolphins as they return from their winter travels. Over the summer months we will be recording data on their activity within the River Tay.
The increase in the numbers of dolphins has led many experts to the conclusion that they are the beginnings of a new colony, at present, resident in the Tay for at least six months of the year.
It is our hope that over the coming years we can build up a picture of these animals, leading to a greater understanding of individual dolphins, their family groups, their movements around our coastline and the environment they inhabit, as they continue to grow and develop into a fully resident colony.
For more details on the project, please visit the Crawsnest Dolphin Project
Comments Off