In the next few days the UK Government will make a crucial decision. They will decide whether to allow drilling for oil and gas in the sanctuary created for the bottlenose dolphins of the Moray Firth, Scotland. Please send an e-mail to the Minister of State for Energy, Malcolm Wicks, urging him to ensure protection for the Moray Firth.
To read the full story and send an email, go to the WDCS
As we approach the end of the ’season’, I’d again like to thank all those people who have regularly sent in their sightings reports… your contribution added to our own data has given us a starting point from which to expand our knowledge of the dolphins that visit the area. With your help, in the coming years, we hope to add to that knowledge.
This year’s project has already opened our eyes as to how many dolphins are visiting the area. We have also collected a number of photographs of individual dolphins for identification and hope to find out ‘who’ is present. By matching this data with other sightings outwith the area we hope to find which family groups (pods) are visiting us…
On a personal note… I have been extremely encouraged by the response of local people towards the dolphins… The vast majority have shown respect and a sense of care for these animals. It is attitudes like this that will help to keep the dolphins safe over the coming years…
—————————————————
Ps… Thanks to Jim McQeen for sending in a short video clip of the dolphins in 2006….
—————————————————
Hi everyone… We haven’t commented in a while.. Due mainly to our being on the west coast over the last month…
However, we have still been getting sightings info from many members of the public, who have been kind enough to send in their reports… A big THANKS to everyone…
First, let me thank Caroline for the picture of the seals at Tentsmuir.. and also for all her reports of dolphins in the area… Thanks also go to Annie W, Moira D… and to Ron WH… for their detailed sightings reports….
It seems that we still have fairly large numbers of dolphins in the area.. Reports tell of around 30 dolphins being present in the estuary on the incoming tides… We also have reports of around a dozen dolphins travelling between the Tay and the Lunan Bay area on a regular basis….
Please continue to send in your sightings… every sighting is important to our understanding of the movements of the dolphins in our area… Thanks!!!
Pro’s and Cons….
The Crawsnest has been in discussions over the past few weeks with a number of agencies on the ‘pro’s and cons’ of shore-based watching and boat-based watching.
The most commonly quoted reason for going dolphin watching on a boat is to get closer to the dolphins, ie. to get a better view… Although, on the whole, this is probably true, it does not take into account the welfare of the wild dolphins. It is a purely selfish human motive.
The dolphins that enter the River Tay do so to feed. The area that the dolphins are most commonly seen in is the edge of the deeper ’shipping channel’. This is also the channel that the fish use on their journey up the Tay. It also is the area most used by boats that wish to get ‘closer to the dolphins’.
We contend that to take boats into this area while the dolphins are feeding is an abuse of the dolphins. It shows a complete disregard for their welfare and could in fact cause distress and alarm to these wild animals whilst in pursuit of the most natural of objectives, food!
Many of the behaviours that are oohed and aahed at by dolphin watchers in boats are in fact aggressive behaviours that are warning the boats to keep their distance. A prime example of this is ‘tailslapping’ which can be seen anytime a boat enters the vicinity of dolphins feeding.
Once dolphins have completed feeding, they often go into a period of ‘resting’. This is noticable in that they surface more frequently while travelling much slower through the water. It is at this time that they are at their most vulnerable as they do not make deep dives as they are for all purposes ‘fast asleep’. This puts them in danger from boats as they could easily be struck and injured by propellers while in this resting mode.
It is after a period of rest that the dolphins are most likely to put on the acrobatic displays that they are famous for… However, there is no need to go out in boats to witness this kind of behaviour. It is at this time that the dolphins are likely to spread out across the river and may be clearly seen from many vantage points along the shore.
We witnessed an amazing display just 20 metres from the shoreline at Broughty Ferry beach. The animals were breaching, porpoising and spyhopping much to the delight of the 100 or so people present on the beach. All that ‘entertainment’ and it didn’t cost a penny, but most importantly, there was no detrimental effect on the dolphins as they were in their natural environment and we were in ours…
The Crawsnest would ask that you spare a thought for the welfare of these wild animals and watch them from the shore. Please do not take boats out and disturb them… Dolphins are wild animals.. We would like to see them stay that way…
Many Thanks… Crawsnest Team
As a timely codocil… Dolphin ‘hit by boat propeller’
A bottlenose dolphin that has been swimming off the Kent coast since last year has sustained injuries apparently from a boat propeller. Swimmers and boats have recently been ignoring advice to keep away from her.
Full story: BBC
We have been treated to a wonderful display from the dolphins this weekend. With increasing numbers entering the river we have seen a myriad of behaviours from the various groups of dolphins.
On Saturday we had around 30 dolphins in total split into 3 groups. On Sunday there were around 35 dolphins present. The largest group (20) were seen at the mouth of the river with smaller groups (8)+(5)+(3) spreading out across the river to feed, rest and play.
One group of 8 came across to the Broughty Ferry side of the river and we were privy to a display of breaching, porpoising and had close views of the younger dolphins in the group. After the acrobatics the group were seen to calm down and display resting behaviour, surfacing frequently to breathe.
Hopefully, after a slow start to the season, we are now beginning to see the dolphins returning regularly and in increasing numbers. Watch this space…
Many thanks to Gavin, who sent in this picture of a bottlenose dolphin in Lunan Bay.. Taken from a kayak… Look in ‘Farther afield’ for more…
I’m afraid I have to report that the dolphins were on the wrong end of some behaviour which amounted to harrassment on Sunday afternoon…
While most boats were abiding by the dolphin-watching guidelines, there was one boat which consistently approached the dolphins with its engine running. It was also observed to continually change direction heading back towards the dolphins every time they moved away. The boat in question showed no regard for the fact that the dolphins were feeding in the area. It was obvious that the 2 people on board were more interested in their own pleasure rather than the welfare of the animals. Evidence of their engine running can be seen in the picture above, ie wake at the rear of the boat.
As you can also see from the pic above, the river was busy with all sorts of watercraft on Sunday, but the vast majority showed respect for the dolphins. The MVS craft, Marigot and Badger were observing the guidelines, spending no more than 15 minutes with the dolphins. Both boats were seen to cut their engines when in the dolphins vicinity and also to keep at a respectful distance.
There were also a number of jet-skis in the river, but they gave the dolphins a wide berth and did not cause any problems. There were also a couple of high-powered speedboats which approached the dolphins at high speed, but they did cut their engines as they closed in. The sail boats on the river were obviously more interested in their sailing than the dolphins as they were not seen to even approach the animals.
However, the behaviour shown by the occupants of the motor cruiser in question was unacceptable and pictorial evidence will be forwarded to the relevant authorities. If anyone has any details on the boat or its occupants, please contact us…
A picture of the motor cruiser which was harrassing the dolphins in the River Tay.
This behaviour was witnessed by 3 researchers with the Crawsnest Wildlife Group.
The dolphins are now frequenting the river on a fairly regular basis and seem to be fishing in groups rather than solo foraging. We expect to see an increase in numbers over the next few weeks as there is obviously more food in the river now. Here are some sightings from the past few days.
Thursday: one dolphin very close to the shore at James Place. Also saw about five more but over towards Tayport. Report from Caroline.
Saturday: Small group 3/4 headed west (upriver) also another group of 6/8 between the Pile and Horseshoe buoy. Both groups were in the river for around 3 hours. Obvious fishing behaviour was observed… Allan.
Sunday: Again there were 2 groups present in the river.. One group of 4/5 and another of 8. Both groups were observed in earnest fishing behaviour, but later were also seen to be breaching and generally resting. The group of 8 left the river after an hour or so, but the group of 4/5 stayed until the turn of the tide (2 hours). Allan.
Just to let you know about a sighting made in the outer Moray Firth this week…. Researchers with the CRRU (Cetacean Research & Rescue Unit) and the environmental charity Earthwatch were surrounded by a group of around 300 common dolphins.
These dolphins are not native to our waters, but with the rising sea temperatures they may become a more common sight.
Anyway, keep your eyes open… 
We have just received another sighting from Niall who was on the river last evening.
“We were out last night on the river (between about 7 and 8pm) and there seemed to be a few more dolphins than on sunday. There was still a small group of 3 or 4 really close to Tayport Harbour and they seemed to be hunting in the shallows around the pile light. We also spotted another few further out - there seemed to be 2 together and then a couple of individual ones”.
Once again this seems to confirm the lack of food with the dolphins foraging individually….?
Powered by WordPress