Came across this amazing pod of Common Dolphins whilst on route to a dive this week….how lucky are we!! They were hunting around us for about 2 hours and played with "Atlantic Diver " on and off whilst we waited for the slack water…what beautiful creatures, we are so lucky to live in Newquay and experience the marine wildlife here…the dolphins were looking up at the divers as they looked down over the bow of the boat and turning on their sides eyeballing right back again…awesome ….just awesome…!!!!

https://vimeo.com/69387992   Jay one of our divers videoed as they swam or should I say flew across our Bow Wave. He edited all of our collective footage and produced this amazing footage for us to share with you guys..thanks Jay..we love it

We are Master WiSe ( Wildlife Safe) boat operator which means we watch wildlife without causing disturbance, so it was great to watch them hunt from a distance and then they interacted with us when they wanted to….and they were curious…this is the best way to watch wildlife so you don't interfer with their feeding..its so rewarding to watch their hunting techniques.

 Amy then saw the Dolphin turn on its side and look right back up at her….this is always a tearful moment when you get direct eye contact with a Dolphin

 Chris giving his safety talk….trying to look cool for the pic

 Beautiful Gannets also passed by and a few blue jellyfish further off shore.

 and as always lovely Trunk back home in newquay Harbour….Trunk came over to investigate the camera

 

 

Fish Identifying Course took place in Newquay today and WOW!! what an amazing find…4 Giant Gobies. These fish were carefully ID ed and returned unharmed to their rockpool at an undisclosed site in Newquay. Course members helped pull a fish gathering Seine Net at the mouth of Newquay harbour and found species such as Brill, Plaice, Weaver Fish, Smelt, Shrimps and sand eel.

 

Lucky Anglers aboard "Atlantic Diver" on a Deep Sea Fishing Trip accidently caught a huge sunfish as it became entangled underwater around its dorsal fin by the anglers line . It was quickly disentangled and then released unharmed and swam away well. Our Skipper Chris Lowe said " it was huge! They are so weird looking!"

it measured about one and a half metres in length and weighed approximately 50lbs. It was so heavy they struggled to bring it onboard . 

Sunfish are not resident in the UK as they require temperatures of 10 degrees so usually live in tropical or temperate seas above 10 degrees. They come  across from the Mediterranean and feed on the jellyfish that we have been seeing here for the past few weeks as the plankton develops.Feeding  on squid, crustacean and small fish they can be swimming anywhere in the water column , so our divers and snorkeling passengers usually see them on reefs or wrecks but our Sea Safari passengers usually see them when they come up to the surface of the sea as they lie on their side , dorsal fin flapping and bask in the sun. Seabirds often peck at the parasites on them which sunfish tolerate as a mutual symbiotic behavior.

We have been seeing them everyday for the past week as well as Dolphins most days. This was a really rare and fantastic moment to share with our passengers….Don't you just love living and working in Cornwall.

Records of this have been sent to Cornwall Wildlife Trust and Dough Herdson a fish specialist here in Cornwall.

Trips for Fishing and Sea Safaris to spot for sunfish are going daily from Newquay Harbour 

to book please call dave on

07582 466 122

 

20th April 2011 Set to sea again in glorious April sunshine..positively Tropical!! Gary caught most unusual species of the day with ling and a male Cuckoo Wrasse but plenty more came in to throw on the B_B_Q. We passed commercial fisherman Gary on route working on his boat Shannon…a Newquay potting boat. We could see glimpses of crabs and lobsters …good catch Gary!

Another local Family fishing outing aboard the “Atlantic Diver” about 8 miles west of Newquay Harbour provided a good catch sustainably rod and line caught  ..plenty for tea and loads of fun too. Find more recipe ideas on http://www.fishfight.net/recipes/ and sign up to the Fish Fight on…   http://www.fishfight.net/

Two rare Leatherback Turtles have been spotted close to Newquay by local crabbing boats….sadly one had already died as it became accidently caught in pot ropes but the second spotted only a day later was fortunately disentangled by the skipper who said it was a large and very strong Turtle which swam immediately away after its release. Leatherbacks are not exactly native to our waters here but their superb thermoregulators and heat derived from muscle activity can raise their body core temperature to up to 18 degree celcius above the surrounding water temperature so the turtles can survive in our cooler sea temps which rarely get higher than 16 degrees unlike the Loggerhead Turtles which occassionally drift into our North Cornwall Coast along on the Gulf Stream and sadly get hypothermia, become unable to hunt, become dehydrated and if lucky are found and taken to the Blue Reef Aquarium for rehabilitation and eventual release into warmer seas.The Leatherback turtles are listed on the IUNC list of Endangered Species as Critically endangered and research shows that the main cause for this is the ingestion of plastic bags and other marine debri as well as human consumption in hotter climates and rarely bycatch. leatherbacks are the largest and fastest swimming turtle, travelling up to 35km/hour, diving up to 1 280m for 30-70 minutes. Their shell easily distinguishes them from other turtles as it has distinct ridges down its Carapace ( shell) which is made up of leathery skin unlike other turtles who have boney carapace. At this time of year the turtles will be foraging for jellyfish which are abundant , but their particular favourite is the Rhizostome or Barrel jellyfish, this helps to keep the jellyfish population down. For more info about Leatherback Turtles please see below link which was written by Prof. Matt Whitt…one of our local experts: http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2011/jan/05/leatherback-turtles-atlantic-journeys

Thanks also for pics and information given from the crabbing skippers

 

Mates enjoying a Bountiful catch aboard the  “Bounty” today! A great range of species from Pollack, to Cod, Red Gunardand Pouting..all sustainablly rod and line caught and good eating fish. Skipper Ant is now also running evening Congor Fishing Trips from the “Bounty”, details of times of these trips can be found  through our Newquay Sea Safaris and Fishing telephone booking line….Tight lines guys…

Newquay College Students counted well over 200 Guillemots at  a breath takingly beautiful, isolated island North of Newquay Harbour whilst carrying out a Cetaecean, Grey Seal and Marine Bird Survey aboard Atlantic Diver. Gannets dived, seals swam close to the rocky outcrops and Guillemots flew past Jurrasic style calling their  cheery “a-orrr” sound. Colonies like this , Cetaceans and Basking Sharks are often protected by the “Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981” but a new move by Hardliners to change the law so the protection stops could mean many of our British wildlife loose the vital legal protection they need to keep populations safe and healthy and free from harassment. 38 degrees hope to come to the rescue and are requesting signatures to support their petition to lobby the government to keep their promise of protecting our wildlife. Check it out on the following link and join hundreds of others working to keep them safe.   http://www.38degrees.org.uk/dont-scrap-environment-laws . A Big thanks to Dave for bringing it to our attention.

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As Cornwall Wildlife Trust Marine Strandings Network Volunteers Chris and I were able to leap into action when Chris heard of the reappearance of the dead Leatherback Turtle that was sadly pot rope entangled here off Newquay ten days previously.( see previous blog). We alerted CWTMSN and Atlantic diver went out to tow the Turtle to safe waters and prevent a shipping hazard. it was later agreed to bring it into Newquay Harbour for recording and removal. British Divers Marine Life Rescue Marine Mammal Medics joined the crew of volunteers and used their expeience of a previous turtle stranding to assist its recording of vital measurements which will help in identifying its sex, age and which rookery it came from. Full press release and contacts below:

“Enormous rare turtle is recorded in Newquay”

A rare leatherback sea turtle was towed into Newquay Harbour by Diving and Newquay Sea Safaris boat Atlantic Diver on Thursday 4/08/2011, after it was spotted by a tripping boat earlier in the day just over one mile from Newquay Harbour and was considered to be a shipping hazard.

The turtle was first reported at sea 9 days previously after, sadly, having become entangled in a pot rope just off St Agnes, where it was believed to have drowned, but the body then disappeared. The right flipper had been removed to disentangle it and this later helped support the theory that this was the same turtle. It was approximately 2 metres in length, probably the largest ever recorded in Cornwall, and is thought to be male.

A large team of volunteers from Cornwall Wildlife Trust Marine Strandings Network and British Divers Marine Life Rescue retrieved and recorded the turtle, which, due to its huge size and weight presented quite a challenge and attracted a large crowd of people keen to learn more about the animal. Measurements and photos were taken for the Strandings Network’s database and these will also contribute to UK turtle strandings records database. Unfortunately it was too degraded to be taken for post-mortem examination, but samples were taken for DNA research and were sent to the Animal Health Veterinary Laboratories Agency, Polwhele, in Truro for analysis. Cornwall County Council liaised with Mick Webb, the Newquay Harbour Master who assisted the volunteers, to arrange removal of the turtle remains.

There are three genetically distinct populations of leatherback turtle: Atlantic, Pacific and Malaysian Pacific but, as turtle expert Professor Matt Witt explained when he was contacted by the volunteers, this turtle could have been an Atlantic Caribbean turtle, determined by the shallowness of the ridges down its  shell.

Leatherbacks are the largest of all the sea turtles and, although not native to the UK, are frequent visitors and can survive in our waters by raising their body temperature to up to 18 degrees Celsius above the surrounding water. They often follow food into our cooler waters, which are abundant with jellyfish, the turtles’ main food source. Threats to the turtles are mainly from ingesting plastic bags and other marine litter; from tourism disturbance where they lay their eggs; from being eaten as a delicacy and, rarely, from accidental bycatch. They are listed on the IUNC’s list of Endangered Species as “ Critically Endangered”.

The event highlighted the benefit of the strong links between the various organisations involved and the Cornwall Wildlife Trust Marine Strandings Network are very grateful to all those who helped retrieve the turtle. They welcome reports of stranded marine animals to their Hotline – 0845 201 2626.

 

ENDS

 

Contacts:

Annabelle Lowe
Atlantic Diving/Newquay Sea Safaris and Fishing

Jan Loveridge
CWT Marine Strandings Network

Dave Jarvis
BDMLR( British Divers Marine Life Rescue)

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Trunk , the female grey seal semi resident to Newquay Harbour had an exploratory sniff and stretched her neck to what you would imagine was near breaking point, then recoiled rapidly as if she was unfamiliar with the scent…poor Trunk!!

 

(For those with a delicate stomach it may be best to avoid the next few pics as they explore the turtle in greater detail..thanks)