All the photographs in this blog were taken during the cruise.
1st-4th September, Liverpool to Gibraltar
MS Bolette left Liverpool late afternoon on the 1st September for a return journey of 11 nights stopping briefly in ports at Ceuta, north Africa and in southern Spain and western Portugal. We quickly unpacked, checked in for the Entertainments Team meeting and then headed out on deck for departure. In warm, but dull, conditions we scanned over the river and sand bars of the Mersey estuary, where 50 or more great cormorants sat upon buoys and a few oystercatchers rested on the sand bars. There were at least 14 harbour porpoises and a few grey seals in the estuary. A rich assortment of larger gulls was supported by six little gulls, 30 each of common and sandwich terns and an arctic skua. Further along and heading west beyond the wind farms off the North Wales coast were 55 bottlenose dolphins, these were big bruisers compared to the lithe individuals we’d see further south off Spain and Portugal. By nightfall, the bird list had also included 300 common guillemot and 11 common scoter.
Little Gull - Liverpool Bay © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Atlantic Grey Seals - Liverpool Bay © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Common Bottlenose dolphin - Liverpool Bay © Jeff Clarke/OWE
An early start on 2nd September for first light as Bolette continued southerly from the Irish sea and via Saint Georges channel into the Celtic sea. Although again overcast with restricted visibility the moderate breeze from the north-west helped make the 0900-1000 deck watch, from the front of the ship, a pleasant experience as we met enthusiastic guests for the first time.
The morning 'wildlife watch' 2nd September Celtic Sea © Jeff Clarke/OWE
During the day we saw a minimum of 370 short beaked common dolphins and two fin whales. As one of the many pods of common dolphins approached Bolette's bow, a darker dolphin appeared momentarily in their midst, we wondered if it might be a striped dolphin. Fortuitously it appeared in the viewfinder of one of our cameras as it went aerial and the mystery was solved. It was a rare melanic form of common dolphin. Our individual is distinctly toward the darker end of the melanic spectrum.
Common Dolphin - Celtic Sea © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Typical common dolphin (left) and melanistic common dolphin (right) - Celtic Sea © Jeff Clarke/OWE
As the day progressed the early calm developed into a 4metre choppy swell, making viewing more onerous, but still six European storm petrel, and a Wilson’s storm petrel were seen. Wilson’s storm petrel breeds in the Southern Ocean and migrates into and around the north Atlantic through the northern summer, so the bird we saw will now be heading south towards its breeding grounds.
Globally there are at least 54 recognised species of storm petrels, many are dark brown-black with a white rump and being not much bigger than a house martin, are often difficult to see from a moving cruise ship particularly when there is a swell or a choppy sea state. The latin name of many of the northern family, Hydrobatidae, translates as water walker, associated to their habit of lightly flitting, sometimes with legs dangling, and briefly alighting on the water surface to pick small items of food off, or near, the water surface. Rarely seen from land unless there has been a strong gale, storm petrels were colloquially known, before the formal classification and categorisation of birds as we know it today, as 'Mother Carey's chickens'. Mother Carey, was a fictional supernatural character said to be the harbinger of storms.
Storm petrels breed colonially on remote islands and islets returning to breed in holes, or nooks and crannies only under the cover of darkness, due to their vulnerability to diurnal predators like great black-backed gulls, and leaving an hour or so before dawn. European and Leach’s are British breeding species. Although we didn’t see any on this trip, Leach’s storm petrel, which can be blown into the Mersey estuary after strong north westerly autumnal gales. It has recently been added to the Birds of Conservation Concern red list along with two other species seen during the trip, great skua and arctic tern, joining arctic skua which had previously been added to the list.
In late summer all the north Atlantic breeding storm petrels move south so we were seeing birds making this migration. The ring size needed for a European storm petrel has the same internal dimension (2.3mm) as for a blue tit. Like many rings fitted to seabirds and waders it is made out of incoloy, a high performance dark coloured alloy resistant to deterioration in saline water. Ringing recoveries have shown that these small birds live an average of 11 years but can live up to 33years, maybe longer.
Four northern wheatear and three barn swallows rode the slipstream of, or landed on, the ship for at least part of the 2nd September before continuing their migration. Eight northern wheatears bounced around on various decks on the 3rd, from early morning for a few hours, took a short break before departing onwards, bound, maybe, for the Iberian peninsula and/or North Africa.
Northern Wheatear on the top deck forward of Bolette - Biscay © Jeff Clarke/OWE
It was good to see that these birds were also able to glean a few wind-blown insects to snack upon. Potentially less able to fare well was the corncrake which alighted briefly on Bolette in the early hours and chanced upon by one guest with insomnia. After dawn the bird wasn’t to be relocated but easily identifiable as a grey coloured juvenile via smartphone photo.
A juveline corncrake aboard Bolette in the middle of the night © a passenger
We were also able to briefly introduce our team and its wide range of experience and interests to a wider audience in the Neptune Lounge. This would also be the venue for another four scheduled wildlife and migration themed presentations.
As usual our binocular workshop proved incredibly popular. It's good to know that so many people benefit from this as it enables them to see the wildlife during the cruise that they would otherwise miss.
Ocean Wildlife Encounters Binocular workshop on Deck 6 Forward - © OWE
The north Celtic sea allowed the opportunity to see truly oceanic tubenose birds in their preferred environment, wild oceanic waters. As with the storm petrels we were able to observe birds just finishing their northern breeding season (800 Manx shearwaters, 350 Cory’s shearwaters) and those which breed in the south Atlantic (150 great shearwaters and 16 sooty shearwaters).
Cory's Shearwater - Celtic Sea © Jeff Clarke/OWE
At the southern end of the Celtic Sea we had a typicaly brief view of a Barolo shearwater barreling away from Bolette like an auk with longer wings. Most people have never heard of a Barolo shearwater. It was only recently split from the little shearwater complex. Barolo shearwater is a completely erroneous name. It was named in honour of the Marquis of Barolo, a municipality in the Piedmont region of Italy (rather than the delicious wine of the same name). The bird breeds no closer than the Islands of the Canaries and the Azores.
Overnight a disorientated great shearwater landed onboard and needed to be recovered from the place it was seeking refuge. It’s intriguing how many birds end up in ‘smokers corner’ on Bolette and Borealis. In the hand, the bird was clearly strong and uninjured and able to demonstrate, to a small group of interested passengers, just how sharp the tip of the bill and the cutting edges are, by getting a good grip on human flesh. After a few smartphone images were taken, it was released in the lee of the vessel from the rear of deck 3 and flew easily away. Hopefully to enjoy another 25years of productive life.
Brian rescues a fiesty Great Shearwater from Deck 8 of Bolette © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Great Shearwater successfully repatriated to the Celtic Sea © Jeff Clarke/OWE
A single Fea’s (type) petrel flew rapidly past, mid distance, on the afternoon of the 3rd allowing good views for those able to ‘get on it”. Northern gannets numbered no more than 35 throughout this stage of the journey and very few chose to ride alongside the ship, as they sometimes seem to “enjoy, as do northern fulmar, of which, despite long hours of continual watching, we saw only six. The avian diversity was added to by singletons of yellow and grey wagtail, five Mediterranean gulls and 14 grey phalaropes.
Northern Fulmar - Celtic Sea © Jeff Clarke/OWE
The 3rd and 4th September remained warm and with clearing skies and a temperature high of 28°C. Lesser black backed gulls were a constant theme as the ship continued southwards. Small groups of juveniles casually coasting over Bolette and onwards for their first migration. In the four sea days the estimated total was 1530.
A juvenile Lesser Black-backed Gull cruises past on it's southward migration - Biscay © Jeff Clarke/OWE
The big cetacean highlight of the 3rd September was the lone male Goose-beaked (Cuvier’s beaked) whale, seen first by a guest, close off the port bow, it remained logging at the surface about 30metres off the port side, as the ship travelled past it. Many guests were fortunately able to see it. Guests also had great views of 40 or so striped dolphins, which swam energetically past on the 4th, about 40miles west of the Portuguese coast. Eight fin whale were seen on the 3rd, adding to the two on the 2nd. A single flyingfish was enjoyed by observant guests on the 3rd.
Goose-beaked Whale - East Atlantic © Jeff Clarke/OWE
5th-6th September Gibraltar
The moth trap had been deployed for the first time overnight in clear skies as we rounded Portugal via Cape St Vincent and Sagres for the late morning docking in Gibraltar. Few insects were attracted in the westerly winds, but it still provided a sparkling Crimson Speckled Footman.
Crimson speckled moth from the OWE moth trap deployed on Bolette © Dave McGrath/OWE
In firm, early morning easterly winds, the Straits of Gibraltar increased the cetacean sightings by way of 40 long finned pilot whale, 55 striped dolphin, 20 bottlenose dolphin. Guests enjoying an early morning dolphin watching trips, on which the also saw an ocean sunfish and an immature sea turtle sp., were surrounded by 500 each of striped dolphin and short beaked common dolphin. There were a few sightings of jumping bluefin tuna, but no sign of the tuna fishing fleet, nor the killer whales which also hunt these fish.
Before docking, birds on the sea included 30 black terns and 35 Mediterranean gulls and a Scopoli’s shearwater as well as 30 Cory’s shearwater.
Common bottlenose dolphins head for Bolette's bow Gibraltar Straits © Brian Tollitt/OWE
Striped Dolphin in Straits of Gibraltar © Rob Wadsworth
In Gibraltar the thermometer hit 35°C. A good number of bird species were observed directly from the deck of Bolette, and a shoreside excusions increased the diversity further. Species noted included little egret (1) a purple heron, alongside six grey heron flapped south, in a flock, past “the rock” ; hoopoe (one), pallid swift (4), alpine swift (2) common swift (60), peregrine (2), common kestrel (1), common buzzard (two), Marsh harrier (three) Montagues harrier (two) booted eagle (four), black kite (five), honey buzzard (two), glossy ibis (13), Sardinian warbler (10), willow warbler (three) , blackcap (10) spotted flycatcher (six), blue tit (six), great tit (one). Summed up the day’s sightings.
Blackcap female taking nectar, or pollen, from a tubular flower - Alameda botanic garden © Jeff Clarke/OWE
The OWE team as well as many passengers, headed up through town to the Alameda botanic gardens, that are terraced down the hillside, where the highlights included fabulous trees and palms together with landscaped pools with running water which held Iberian pond turtle. The Emperor violet dropwing, western spectre and scarlet darter dragonflies may have been more interested in laying their eggs there.
The butterfly feeding tables attracted some big showy specimens in the form of two tailed pasha (six) that sipped well decayed banana juice. Meanwhile, monarch butterflies sought nectar from the adjacent ornamental shrubs.
Two-tailed Pasha on rotting banana - Alameda botanic garden - Gibraltar © Brian Tollitt/OWE
Monarch butterfly on Scarlet Milkweed - Alameda botanic garden - Gibraltar © Brian Tollitt/OWE
Of smaller size were Lang’s short-tailed blue, holly blue, geranium bronze, wall brown, speckled wood and a bright male brimstone. On the way back for our scheduled boarding a swallowtail butterfly glided past and an osprey gave a flypast over the airfield. The queues for the cable car up the rock are long, so the best views the OWE team had of Barbary macaque were from distance, including with telescopes from the decks of Bolette.
Osprey immature - Gibraltar © Jeff Clarke/OWE
The wind overnight had changed to north-westerly but didn’t produce any early morning raptor migration, probably because most birds had become concentrated over towards the Tarifa area, following several days of easterlies in the preceding week.
We left Gibraltar at 11am for the short crossing of the straits to Ceuta. This city was formerly part of the municipality of Cadiz but after statute became an autonomous city in 1995. Its boundaries are with Morocco and the north African coast. The short time ashore allowed for local walks which enabled us to see common bulbul (six) and African blue tit (two), spotless starling (15), Barbary partridge (two). An antlion and another crimson speckled moth, added to the insect interest.
View of Gibraltar from the deck of Bolette © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Into the evening of the 6th one of our team connected with a stream of migrant raptors whilst exploring the hills to the west of our berth, a few WhatsApp messages later and the rest of the team aboard Bolette were able to get interested guests zeroed-in on the incoming birds of prey. Good numbers of honey buzzards together, with a few booted eagles, marsh and Montagues harriers were on the move and as dusk fell groups of birds could be seen against a clear amber sunset to our west. Over an hour or so we estimated about 500 birds. Unfortunately, the birds were making landfall near to Belzu, about 5km from Bolette's position and then riding the wooded ridge up towards the Mirador de Isabel 2 where it seemed many birds were going to roost overnight.
Honey Buzzard flock making landfall at Cueta after crossing from Tarifa © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Honey buzzards forming a kettle above Mirador de Isabel II - Ceuta © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Booted eagle over Ceuta near Mirador de Isabel II © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Hills above Ceuta looking down towards Bolette in the harbour © Jeff Clarke/OWE
7th September, Cadiz
The ship left Ceuta late in the evening as darkness fell and we awoke early Saturday morning in Cadiz. A quick scan of Bolette's decks before clearance to go ashore produced a somewhat notorious moth in the form of a pine processionary. We'd seen evidence of attempts to control their defoliating caterpillars in the botanical garden in Gibraltar.
Pine processionary moth from the decks of Bolette - Cadiz © Jeff Clarke/OWE
It’s always enjoyable to walk a city's streets as it readies for the day ahead. Cadiz is one of the oldest continuously occupied cities in Western Europe, with its strategically located port founded by the Phoenicians as early as the 7th century BC.
Whilst guests enjoyed trips away from the town the OWE explored the city and its coastal parks. Alongside the anticipate yellow-legged and Mediterranean gulls there was a range of waders enjoying the exposed rocky shorelines e.g. ruddy turnstone (100), whimbrel (two), sanderling (four), greenshank (eight) ringed plover (30) and eight little terns. The coastal parklands had attracted some migrant passerines and included common redstart (one), willow warbler (one), chiffchaff (one) and blackcaps (10). None-native birds were hard to miss in the form of monk, rose ringed and alexandrine parakeets. A group of 62 spoonbill flew over and there were both little egret (eight) and cattle egret (four) .
Rose-ringed Parakeet © Brian Tollitt/OWE
Adult Mediterranean Gull - Cadiz © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Yellow-legged gull at Castillo de San Sebastian - Cadiz © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Leaving at 1730 allowed a few hours for deck watching as we headed away from the Costa de la Luz into the gulf of Cadiz in a south westerly force 6 (Beaufort). The only cetaceans were a small pod of the aforementioned 'slimline version' of common bottlenose dolphin (six), along with an unidentified dolphin and a shark the briefly cruised at the surface, in the calmer water shortly after leaving port.
A rather gracile common bottlenose dolphin - Cadiz © Jeff Clarke/OWE
On this particular cruise we saw very few wading birds in active migration but about an hour out of Cadiz the distinctive "teuw, teuw, teuw" calls of Greenshank. In the murky light of the overcast eveinng a flock of eight powered their way south.
Seven of the eight Greenshank passing over Bolette off Cadiz © Jeff Clarke/OWE
We were passed continuously by big shearwaters, Cory’s shearwater (20, including a leucistic bird) were now dominated by the Mediterranean breeding Scopoli’s shearwater (50) with many of these in primary moult. The diagnostic characteristics of these two sibling and very recently split species, are really difficult to discern in the field and it’s better to get good photographic images of the underwings to give greater certainty. Scopoli's have what look a bit like white fingers running down into the dark border at the tip of the underwing.
Scopoli's shearwater off Cadiz © Jeff Clarke/OWE
A smaller, dark, shearwater, with feet projecting well beyond the tail, attracted our attention. We anticipated it being a Balearic shearwater, but it was atypically pale on the underside, we grabbed a few record-shot images and at least one showed the underwing well enough to confirm that it was a Yelkouan 'type' shearwater. There is a Balearic/Yelkouan hybrid referred to as Menorcan shearwater that is indistinguishable in the field from true Yelkouan. The uncertainty comes from the fact that satellite tracking of these birds suggests that the vast majority of Yelkouan Shearwaters move toward the Eastern Mediterranean after breeding, whilst Menorcan hybrids tend to move west, out into the Atlantic.
Yelkouan 'type' (Menorcan?) shearwater off Cadiz © Jeff Clarke/OWE
As is often the case, the Barolo shearwater travelled alone. and quickly, so not an easy one for too many people to see given the conditions. A juvenile Audouin’s gull was with roosting gulls as we left Cadiz harbour and a shag put in a brief appearance and for the first time in a few days there were northern gannets (25)
8th September, Lisbon
A stunning pre-sunrise approaching Lisbon © Jeff Clarke/OWE
A cloudless dawn greeted us as we were piloted from the Atlantic up the river Tagus into Lisbon as the sun was rising, and from our perspective, central to the '25th April suspension bridge'.
Sunrise over the river Tagus, Lisbon © Brian Tollitt/OWE
The nearly three million population of Lisbon was today swelled not only by two cruise ships but also the tartan army who were in town for the league of nations fixture with Portugal. It was quite strange to be accompanied in Parque Eduardo VII early on a Sunday morning by a kilted piper. Less unusual was that Ronaldo scored a late winner for the home team.
Birding in the park was very pleasant, on a warm windless morning, starting with a pair of hoopoe confident enough to potter around and probe the baked soil as people approached with phones to take shots.
Hoopoe - Lisbon © Brian Tollitt/OWE
Hoopoe - Lisbon © Jeff Clarke/OWE
The none-native monk parakeets (two) blue crowned parakeets (16) and rose-ringed (ring necked) parakeets (10) were equally ambivalent and seemingly unphased by dog walkers, joggers and as the day went on, increasing numbers of people enjoying the openness of the park. No need for too much fieldcraft here, although for other species it was a definite requirement; black redstarts (12), short toed treecreeper (one), coal tit (five), firecrest (four) pied flycatcher (six) spotted flycatcher (one), serin (seven) spotless starling (30) ; each quite easy to hear and see but far harder to photograph.
Blue crowned parakeet - Lisbon © Brian Tollitt/OWE
Pied Flycatcher - Lisbon © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Black Redstart - Lisbon © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Serin - Lisbon © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Firecrest - Lisbon © Jeff Clarke/OWE
The parrots weren't the only non-native fauna in the park. There were pond turtles too. This included yellow-bellied slider (from the south-eastern states of the US), a form of the more familiar red-eared terrapin often found in UK freshwater bodies. These can impact on native species such as Mediterranean pond turtle. 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' has a lot to answer for. At least the local Moorhens had survived their depredations.
Yellow-bellied slider - Lisbon © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Moorhen chick - Lisbon © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Prior to departure the OWE team and a good number of passengers spent time watching and attempting to photograph, the many swifts that were whipping over the top deck of Bolette. A scan across the city skyline showed many more were scything through the late afternoon air. A few were identified as Common Swift but the majority proved to be Pallid Swift, a species more associated with Southern Europe.
Pallid Swift over Lisbon cityscape from MS Bolette © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Pallid Swift over Lisbon, with insect filled crop, from MS Bolette © Jeff Clarke/OWE
As with the previous day, a late afternoon departure allowed for sea-watching and on the way a few harbour porpoise were in the Tagus estuary. Shearwater species and numbers were similar to yesterday and included Balearic shearwater (10) and Yelkoun shearwater (two).
9th September Leixoes
The early morning arrival was warm and calm but with a bright sea fret was accompanied by our first blasting of the ship’s foghorn. Once docked, the mist only partly shielded the tens of thousands of yellow-legged and lesser black-backed gulls resting around the harbour and on adjoining Matosinhos beach.
Yellow-legged and lesser black-backed gulls - Matosinhos beach, Leixoes © Brian Tollitt/OWE
The light south easterly was likely responsible for the mist mixing the hot Iberian air with the colder Atlantic and the sea fret came and went through most of the day.
Potentially due to the mist migrant passerines were evident as soon as we walked from the port. Immediately there were birds in trees and shrubs by the docks including ‘willow-chiffs’ pied flycatcher and spotted flycatcher. We headed of along the prom, where White Wagtails searched for insects in the short-mown grass, towards Parque da Cidade do Porto.
White Wagtail - Leixoes © Jeff Clarke/OWE
On arrival at the park is was apparent that both recently landscaped and older more established plantations held abundant black redstart, more pied flycatchers (80+) and spotted flycatcher (45+). This was a treat for British birders as both flycatcher species are in massive and long term decline in the UK.
Spotted Flycatcher - Leixoes © Jeff Clarke/OWE
There were Iberian green woodpecker (three), short toed treecreeper (two), long tailed tit (three) , greenfinch (two), serin (eight), willow warbler (10) and firecrests (four) and in more open grassy fringed areas healthy groups of house sparrow (100+) and there were a few of each ; spotless starling, robin and wren. The man-made muddy waterbodies hosted plenty of naturalised/domesticated wildfowl along with little grebe, grey heron, mallard, moorhen.
Iberian Green Woodpecker - Leixoes © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Not for the squeamish, an Asian hornet sought protein from the eye of a recently dead gull. This invasive species has spread rapidly across Europe and was abundant in the park; nests have recently been recorded in the UK.
One of the hundreds of Asian hornets recorded in the park - Leixoes © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Elsewhere in the park, the 50+ magpies had yet to find gull carrion. Half a dozen jays added to the day’s sightings along with 30, generally very hard to see, Iberian wall lizards.
Fewer of these lizards were seen than on previous trips, and it was noted that in the park areas and botanical gardens we visited that there had been a marked decline, including Moorish Gecko’s and Occelated lizards that were usually present, however given the evidence before us, we did wonder whether feral or domestic cats are having an impact, as there had been a marked increase in their numbers, alongside a apparent desire to cater for them.
An example of the Feral cats and accommodation on the seawall at Cadiz. © Anthony Brandreth/OWE
A newly made freshwater wetland closer to the coastal road attracted a juvenile little tern and for those looking closely; the selection of reptiles included eastern swamp slider, red eared terrapin and Iberian pond turtle.
Little Tern juvenile - Leixoes © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Darting over the surface and alongside the vegetated margins it was possible to see Emperor dragonfly, violet dropwing, scarlet darter and blue tailed damselfly. Butterflies were not numerous but represented by small numbers of Mazarine blue, Langs short-tailed blue, geranium bronze, Iberian speckled wood, large white, small white and red admiral.
Violet dropwing - Leixoes © Jeff Clarke/OWE
The sea fret was coming and going and the small patches of coastal tamarisk like scrub near to the 17th century Forte de Sao Francisco Xavier were acting like a migrant trap and in a short time of watching, it revealed melodious warbler, common whitethroat and garden warbler. A couple of white wagtails ran around the nearby short grass and basketball facilities and a white banded digger bee zipped around the remaining wildflowers.
Walking back to the ship after a welcome cafe stop, a few barn swallows passed through, and 3 crag martins hawked almost constantly on the warm afternoon air rising up in front of the apartments around the newly made Parque Estacionamento and a couple of common sandpiper called from rip-rap along the harbour walls as Bolette pulled away from Leixoes into the sunset allowing time to see a single bottlenose dolphin close into the ship on the port side, so close that efforts to photograph it were unsuccessful despite the ability of those equipped with long lenses.
10th - 12th September at sea
There were very few birds observed at sea on the 10th. As Bolette headed north, from Portugal into Biscay, northwesterly winds of force 4-5 during the day, that would later increase to force 9-10 overnight, alongside heavy cloud and lowering temperatures, made watching from deck 6 forward impossible and we headed for the shelter of deck 3. Before darkness a group of seven Eurasian whimbrel headed south at low altitude, as did a single long tailed skua and 20 sooty shearwater were also recorded.
A predawn start on the 11th; we awoke west of the Isles of Scilly, where this late summer there have been good numbers of seabirds. This was a genuinely spectacular migration encounter, with rafting and mobile great shearwaters totalling over 2000 individuals. Intermingled in a veritable tubenose fest we also recorded Manx shearwater (400+) , Corys shearwater (250+), Northern fulmar (50), European storm petrel (12) and a barolo shearwater additionally supported by northern gannet (50+), and one pomarine skua.
Great Shearwaters (and one Cory's) in the Western Approaches © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Cory's Shearwater (left} & Great Shearwater (right) - Western Approaches © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Cory's Shearwater - Western Approaches © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Northern Gannet - Celtic Sea © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Cetacean watching over the final two days was significantly hampered by choppy conditions. Headwinds, rain and spray made the forward facing upper decks largely impossible to watch from over extended periods. However, the OWE team and stalwart guests were able to see at least some some, of the following:
Species | 10th | 11th |
bottlenose dolphin | 1 | |
fin whale | 5 | |
sperm whale | 5 | |
unidentified rorqual | 14 | 1 |
common dolphin | 80 | |
humpback whale | 2 | |
unidentified beaked whale | 1 |
Fin Whale blowing - Bay of Biscay © Jeff Clarke/OWE
Passing west of the Smalls Lighhouse, Skomer, Ramsey and the Pembrokeshire peninsula the winds gradually abated somewhat but there were fewer birds than in the southwest approaches. It was time for the cruise review, which took place in 'The Auditorium' to a packed audience, with standing room only, and it was gratifying to see how many cruise passengers were eager to find out just what the journey had produced.
It's the final countdown - the OWE cruise review presented by Dave McGrath © OWE
In the final hours of daylight whilst travelling up the Irish Sea 50+ common guillemots, Arctic tern (two), and Arctic skua (two) were seen, but clearly all the breeding puffins had departed, and as the dusk approach so did the OWE team to pack ready for home. By the time Bolette had docked in Liverpool she had run nearly 2800miles, including an overnight trip to the Isle of Man in the early hours of the 12th to pick up the Liverpool pilot who had been stuck there after an Irish Sea gale the previous day.
The OWE team had one final task to undertake. Perhaps the most unexpected ship stowaway of the trip was a deaths-head hawkmoth which spent the 10th asleep on deck 3, safely cordoned off by the crew of Bolette, enabling many guests to get a good look at it. It disembarked with the OWE team to be released in a suitable location.
Death's-head hawkmoth on deck 3 of Bolette 10th September. © Dave McGrath/OWE
Death's-head hawkmoth on deck 3 of Bolette 10th September. © Brian Tollitt/OWE
Disembarkation Day: this took place in the early morning of the 12th September under a lowering sky, we said our last farewells to crew and guests before we all went our separate ways. As ever, thank you to the guests for great company, those all important extra sharp pairs of eyes, sharing photos and the experiences of this trip with us. Good luck to you all and we hope we, or other colleagues from OWE, are able to enjoy your company again. Guests on the cruise are welcome to make use of the OWE images in the blog fas a memento for their own personal use only.
Cruises are amazingly well organised and OWE’s input is just a small component of the scheduled events on board, so, as always, we recognise and appreciate all the hard work which goes on behind the scenes for many months before and during each cruise, to enable things to run smoothly and OWE to participate and support, thank you to all of you.
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