Moray Firth latest

What a month October was! We had some great sightings even from my back garden and also at various watch sites along the Moray Firth.

Over the month bottlenose dolphins in groups of 10+ were recorded along the eastern coastline. In the Inner Firth larger groups of 20+ were seen at Cromarty and also at Cannonry Point. On many occasions I saw a small group of dolphins, which included several calves, travelling between Cullen Bay and Buckie.

One highlight occurred when I was in the boat carrying out my usual survey. I was travelling close to the Bow Fiddle rock area looking for a basking shark which had been sighted in the area, when suddenly a female bottlenose dolphin and her calf appeared in front of the bow and kept looking up towards me. They appeared from nowhere, as these wild animals are prone to do, and at one point the mother even went off to feed, leaving her calf swimming around the boat. I had by now switched off the engine there I was, bobbing about on the ocean with the company of this lovely young dolphin for at least five minutes before its mother returned, the sea state was so calm that the ocean was like a mirror, giving me a fantastic view of this calf and its' mother as they moved easily around their natural habitat.

Off Fort George and Banff some harbour porpoise were recorded and sadly I was also called out to a stranded porpoise near Buckie - the 7th this year. It is vital that more extensive research is carried out on these shy marine mammals, as most people that visit the area want to see the dolphins, but watching porpoise is enchanting at times they are so small and gentle. Minke whales have not been sighted as frequently this year, but basking shark sightings seem to be on the increase, the largest one I have recorded was over 25ft long.
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Unfortunately it is dark here by 5pm now, but luckily we continue to experience some fantastic sunrises and sunsets. The thought of the upcoming Xmas season seems to be uppermost in people's mind now but not for me - my mind will continue to be fixed on the wonderful wildlife in the area and how best to protect them.

Ah well, until next month, stay warm.

Pete Macdonald