Feeding frenzies

There were massive seabird feeding frenzies seen from pelagic trips out of the Isles of Scilly the day before my arrival and the day after my departure for three trips out on the Sapphire earlier this month. I might have felt a bit cheated but for the fact that we encountered our own on the return journey on Scillonian III on the Sunday evening. We were approaching the mainland not far from the Wolf Rock lighthouse when Manx Sheawaters and Short-beaked Common Dolphins started appearing in large numbers.

Short-beaked Common Dolphin  - this one was taken on a pelagic on 5th August

Common Dolphin from Scillonian III

One from earlier in the day on the Sapphire

Views of Great Shearwater from Scillonian III were exceptional

A steady stream of Great Shearwaters crossed our bows as we headed for Penzance

There are five Great Shearwaters in this shot alone - the view for several hundred yards ahead of us was similar

Sooty Shearwater from Scillonian III

Manx Shearwater from Scillonian III

Cory's Shearwater from Scillonian III

Manx Shearwater

We disturbed several rafts of Manxies as we steamed through, and on close inspection some of the rafts appeared to contain more Great than Manx Shearwaters. The odd Sooty and Cory's were also present. There were birds on the water as far as the eye could see and when dolphins started to cause the surface of the water to boil it felt like we were approaching the centre of the action. This was confirmed shortly afterwards when a whale appeared to blow some distance ahead. I readied the camera as we approached the spot and managed to get a few shots of a Minke Whale surfacing close to the ship.

First view of the Minke was quite distant

A dolphin surfaces behind the Minke Whale as Manx Shearwaters track it in the air

The next time the Minke Whale surfaced it was much closer to the ship

Several flocks of Arctic Terns were seen at sea

Arctic Tern

Fulmar is a frequent companion on pelagic trips

Gannet with rising Moon behind

Great Skua was seen on all three pelagics

Close scrutiny of photos revealed this to be an adult Long-tailed Skua

Sooty Shearwater with Bishop Rock lighthouse behind

Pelagic poetry

Of all the birds seen regularly in Britain, Balearic Shearwater is one of the rarest in global terms, being regarded as critically endangered by the IUCN. Tourist industry development near its breeding colonies and introduced mammals such as cats and rats are largely responsible for the perilous position of the species. Despite their small population, however, we are fortunate to see them annually off Portland Bill, but pelagic trips, such as the ones I enjoyed last weekend on the Isles of Scilly, generally provide better opportunities to see the species up close. On my first trip of three this year, an evening excursion, one flew alongside the Sapphire long enough for a few pictures. It was outnumbered by Sooty and Great Shearwaters, which we saw on all three days, and Manx Shearwaters, which have been present in the waters around Scilly in their thousands over recent weeks. All four species seem to move so effortlessly over the open sea - poetry in motion and a joy to watch.

Balearic Shearwater off Scilly, 4th August

A view showing the plain upperwings and toes protruding beyond the tail

Note the unclean white underparts and pot-bellied appearance...

...compared to the more clearly contrasting black and white Manx Shearwater

The black upperparts of Manx Shearwater can be invisible against a dark sea but its' presence is revealed when it banks to reveal gleaming white underparts

Manx Shearwater overtaking the Sapphire

A very elegant bird in flight

We disturbed several small rafts of Manx Shearwater as we headed out of St Mary's

Sooty Shearwater were seen frequently

Note darker belly and longer wings compared to Balearic Shearwater

Like the Great Shearwater, this is another long distance wanderer from the southern oceans

An effortlessly flier which overtook us with ease

Sooty Shearwater

Sooty Shearwater shows a silvery underwing and flesh coloured feet

A bit close to fit the whole bird in the frame

This bird was with a small raft of Manx Shearwater

Sooty Shearwater - all the key features on view here

A fluke encounter

Whilst on holiday on the west coast of Scotland recently we pawned wedding rings and our first born to fund a whale watching trip out of Gairloch with the excellent Hebridean Wildlife Cruises. Within an hour we had made contact with a Minke Whale just beyond the mouth of the mighty sea loch.

The snout breaks the surface first in the Minke Whale's dive sequence

I didn't expect to be photographing Whale nostrils last week!

Then a long body roll...

...revealing the bulk of the animal and a sharply curved dorsal fin

A more distant view

A big beast, we could see the white sides as it came close to the boat

Minke Whale seen here with the mountains of Wester Ross in the background

The first sighting was distant, but the inquisitive Minke took everyone's breath away by surfacing just yards from the rib. A second individual was seen before we headed out across The Minch for a close look at the Shiant Islands.

A throng of Auks at the base of the cliffs on the Shiant Islands 

Over 60,000 pairs of Puffin breed on the Shiants...

...plus over 10,000 pairs of Razorbill...

...18,000 pairs of Guillemot (this one a Bridled Guillemot)...

...and 1,700 pairs of Shag

Razorbill in flight

Razorbill just getting airborne

I was fortunate enough to land here back in 1999, and although we could not leave the rib on this trip, it was great to return to find the huge colonies of Puffins and other auks apparently still doing well. The 'Enchanted islands', which are closer to Lewis than the mainland, hold approximately 10% of the UK's breeding Puffins and 7% of its Razorbills so they really are a vitally important location for seabirds.

A few pairs of Great Skua breed on the islands

A menacing presence for the other seabirds

Common Dolphin in The Minch

Grey Seals inspected our boat closely

A large Grey Seal on the Shiants

A large Kittiwake colony was also present

Small flocks of Manx Shearwater passed us in The Minch

Unfortunately the island also became home to over 3,000 non-native Black Rats which cause havoc with the ground-nesting birds. In recent years the RSPB, SNH and the Nicolson family, who own the islands, have been working together on an eradication programme. This appears to be bearing fruit as 2016 was a good breeding season for seabirds. While not too many Puffins were at their burrows during our visit, there were certainly thousands on the sea around the base of the cliffs.

The sole habitable dwelling on the Shiant Islands, once owned by Whisky Galore author Compton Mackenzie

Our vessel for the whale-watching trip

Basalt columns on the Shiants



Approaching the Shiant Islands with Lewis in the background

The mountains of Wester Ross from The Minch

Looking back to the mainland from The Minch

The view of Skye and the Old Mann of Storr from The Minch

My crewmates were happy but a bit saddle sore after 4 hours on the water

The long journey back was punctuated by the occasional passing Bonxie, small groups of Manx Shearwater and a small pod of Common Dolphin. A great experience in a memorable week for close encounters with mammals.

George is in there somewhere