Harbour Porpoise - RIP

dylanwinter

dylanwinter

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www.keepturningleft.co.uk
One of the pleasures of my low tides sails on the Humber has been watching a pair of Harbour Porpoises working. At low tide the stream braids around a series of ever shifting mud banks. The water runs at around two knots and is often only a couple of feet deep.

I have watched the pair of fins almost stationary in the water and then they will suddenly burst into action. I assume they are waiting for the fish coming up or down with the tide. The cloudy waters of the Humber are no problem as they use echo-location.

Of course I might be anhtropomorphising somewhat and it might not be the same pair I have seen each time - but I like to think so.

This week I saw one of them dead along the shore about two miles above Trent falls. Half of its head was missing. I have no idea if that was the gulls feeding on an already dead body or if the gash had been made by a prop.

of course it may have died of natural causes as they only live for about 12 years. It still made me rather sad and I really hope that the empty niche will be filled.

They are the UKs most common cetacian but are fairly rare around the south coast - there are supposed to be between 200,000 and 400,000 around the North Sea and British Isles.

I was just wondering if anyone had spent any time watching them and had seen them working and had any observations to pass on

a few links here

http://seawatchfoundation.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Harbour_Porpoise.pdf

http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/life/Harbour_porpoise

http://www.whaledolphintrust.co.uk/species_details.asp?inst=18&species_id=112

Dylan
 
Theres regular siteings around here, mostly Lambay but anywere between Irelands Eye and the Cardy rocks, Balbriggan...
Usualy a one or a pair feeding, just see the dorsal fins and a bit of black back as they are fairly shy
Did get a close up one day as one was swiming just inside a wave alongside, made my day.:cool:
 
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dylanwinter said:
One of the pleasures of my low tides sails on the Humber has been watching a pair of Harbour Porpoises working. At low tide the stream braids around a series of ever shifting mud banks. The water runs at around two knots and is often only a couple of feet deep.

I have watched the pair of fins almost stationary in the water and then they will suddenly burst into action. I assume they are waiting for the fish coming up or down with the tide. The cloudy waters of the Humber are no problem as they use echo-location.

Of course I might be anhtropomorphising somewhat and it might not be the same pair I have seen each time - but I like to think so.

This week I saw one of them dead along the shore about two miles above Trent falls. Half of its head was missing. I have no idea if that was the gulls feeding on an already dead body or if the gash had been made by a prop.

of course it may have died of natural causes as they only live for about 12 years. It still made me rather sad and I really hope that the empty niche will be filled.

They are the UKs most common cetacian but are fairly rare around the south coast - there are supposed to be between 200,000 and 400,000 around the North Sea and British Isles.

I was just wondering if anyone had spent any time watching them and had seen them working and had any observations to pass on

a few links here

http://seawatchfoundation.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Harbour_Porpoise.pdf

http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/life/Harbour_porpoise

http://www.whaledolphintrust.co.uk/species_details.asp?inst=18&species_id=112

Dylan
Click to expand...

Come on Dylan where's the film? :(
I have always wanted to see some around the Solent but never have,apparently they used to be quite numerous & were often seen in pods :(
 
We see them regularly round the Clyde; not necessarily every outing, but often enough that we watch out for them. Certainly I'd expect to see them 2-3 times in a week sailing. Usually in pods of perhaps 10 - it is difficult to count them, as they don't all breathe at once! They seem to completely ignore boats. I often hear them before I see them; the sound of their blow seems to carry across the water quite well. Difficult to see them in anything of a sea, as their backs look just like another wave! Also nearly impossible to photograph, as it is difficult to predict where they'll surface next.
 
Nicholas123 said:
Come on Dylan where's the film? :(
I have always wanted to see some around the Solent but never have,apparently they used to be quite numerous & were often seen in pods :(
Click to expand...


believe me I have tried

but you need to get a lot closer with a camera than you need to get with the binocs

I am starting to learn their favourite low tide hunting spots and where to run the boat aground so that I can get a steady platform

it makes you realise how much effort and hours the BBC wildlife cameramen have to throw at a subject to get the shots we almost take for granted.

I do have shots of the find breaking the surface in their favourite spot while they are waiting for the next meal to arrive and I also have some shots of the dead one

Dylan
 
The first time I took my new First Mate up to the Clyde some came and swam with us for a short time the first evening out as we sailed from Largs to Holy Loch, an excellent introduction to tidal sailing.

Later in the cruise some stayed with us for about an hour as we sailed up Loch Fyne.
 
On the Clyde they are quite often found where tides meet or where sea birds are congregated. I would hazard I see them more often than seals. Sometimes worry that they may take my mackerel line but so far, like the boat, they have ignored it.
 
aquaplane said:
The first time I took my new First Mate up to the Clyde some came and swam with us for a short time the first evening out as we sailed from Largs to Holy Loch, an excellent introduction to tidal sailing.

Later in the cruise some stayed with us for about an hour as we sailed up Loch Fyne.
Click to expand...

Are you sure those weren't dolphins? Like AntarticPilot my experience is that porpoises have zero interest in boats.
 
aquaplane said:
I don't know, they were swimming and breathed air. They could easily have been dolphins, grey sides and underneath from what I remember. Got loads of pix but I can't find any.
Click to expand...

the porpoises are only about four foot long

60lb

more like big fish

never heard of them following a boat

but then I have yet to see dolphins outside of an aquarium or a BBC film so I get pretty excited when I see a seal or a porpoise
 
If I DON'T see Dolphins EVERY time I am out sailing (out of the Haven) then I feel cheated. One of the reasons I love sailing in SW Wales.
MaytriptoFishguardAberystwythLlangrannog-7_zps7793f363.jpg
 
There are quite a lot on the Northumberland coast! You should see them when you get here. If you ever venture North of the Humber. (Not a lot of people do, because there is nothing to see!)
 
Hi Dylan,

there are at least two colonies of Seals in Chichester Harbour, I won't say exactly where as they can be targetted by fishermen as over effective competition.

They're very shy though, in 40+ years messing about in the harbour I've only seen them 3 times, usually a little Labrador-like nose on the surface like a snorkel is all that's visible.

A friend spotted a Seal there once, and jumped in to swim with it, then suddenly remembered films of seals biting fish in half and the slender protection of his jockey shorts, so came up out of the water like a Polaris missile !

I saw a pod of Porpoises in the Solent once, and off Gorey, Jersey we spotted Dolphins, I had the bright idea of turning on the depth sounder to attract them; this worked rather too well, they did a swift turn and came at us like torpedos, " turn it off, turn it off quick ! "

Just north of Guernsey in the 1980's we saw a pod of Pilot Whales, there was a moderate swell running and some ill advised Frenchmen in small yachts were surfing down the waves too close to them, we also saw groups of Basking Sharks - and a really big ' Real Shark ', well over half the length of my Carter 30, a Tiger or even Great White, off Salcombe in 1989.

I just hope such magnificent beasties are just shy, not extinct from such places nowadays.
 
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