An island made of Pilot Whales
by firmm Team
Text: Christine according notes from Katharina, photos: firmm
When we started our journey on the 1st of June, we had no idea what was awaiting us this day. We had already had a lot of good sightings in the last few weeks, but this day exceeded all expectations. After a brief search, a huge group of Pilot Whales approached us a little further north than normal.
We counted several hundred animals, mainly females with their calves. Among them we also discovered a newborn, which could only be a few days old, as one could clearly see the birth stripes.
They came very close to our boat so that we could admire them extensively from all sides. They were in no hurry at all and surrounded us for a long time. We could watch them rolling, spyhopping, playing and swimming on their backs.
As we did not recognise any of the animals, we assume that they were Pilot Whales from another area. Further into the Mediterranean, there was a lot of wind and very high waves that day, so it would be quite possible that these Pilot Whales with their numerous offspring had sought shelter with us in the south before they swam back to their usual area later.
Later, some dolphins approached to have a close look at the incredibly large Pilot Whale assembly.
