A RARE visitor was spotted in Cardigan Bay recently, exactly a year after the first minke whale sighting in a decade.
The survey team at Sea Watch Foundation – a national charity working to protect marine wildlife – spotted the minke whale on June 20.
The team of volunteer researchers were conducting a line transect survey, measuring the abundance and distribution of marine species.
Roughly eight nautical miles off the coast of Cardigan – within Cardigan Bay Special Area of Conservation – monitoring officer Katrin Lohrengel spotted an animal surfacing in front of their Dolphin Spotting Boat Trips boat.
After the animal surfaced for a second time, it became clear that it was not a dolphin.
Minke whales are one of the smaller baleen whale species, growing up to 8.6 metres. They have a pointed head and a body that is dark grey to black, with grey areas on the flanks. Their characteristic white flipper bands make them easy to distinguish from other baleen whale species.
This latest sighting came exactly one year after the first reported minke whale was spotted in Cardigan Bay in a decade.
“Minke whale sightings are so rare for us, we were simply not expecting it, certainly not on the anniversary of our last sighting,” Ms Lohrengel said.
“We stopped the boat and cut the engines, hoping we’d have at least another glimpse of it when it surfaced again.”
However, rather than continuing on its direction of travel, the whale surfaced immediately behind the boat and swam slowly underneath it, close enough for the survey team to follow its every move under the water. It continued to circle the boat for approximately 10 minutes before moving off.
“It felt unreal,” Ms Lohrengel said. “All whale sightings are special, of course, but to be able to observe one at such close range on its own terms was simply amazing. We could not believe our luck.”
Prof. Peter Evans, the Sea Watch Foundation director, said: “Minke whales can be very curious around boats. We've often had encounters like this in the Hebrides but never in Wales so it was a wonderful experience for all involved.
“Over the past few weeks we have had some incredible wildlife encounters in Cardigan Bay, including Risso’s dolphins and hundreds of common dolphins which highlights the diversity of species that use this area and the importance of the Sea Watch Foundation’s continued survey work in the two Welsh Special Areas of Conservation.”
If you spot a whale, dolphin or porpoise, you can report it to the Sea Watch Foundation either via their seawatchfoundation.org.uk or their Sea Watcher app and contribute to the ongoing monitoring work.
If you would like to learn more about UK cetaceans and get actively involved, find out more on how to take part in Sea Watch Foundation’s nationwide event: National Whale and Dolphin Watch.
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