Uncommon occurrence for Holly's Wednesday Team!

I arrived at Strumble to find Holly and volunteer Eva already focusing and taking pic's. The object of their concentration was a cloud of seabirds over Common Dolphins working a bait ball They were quite distant and it was often difficult to see the dolphins for the melee of birds fighting to get at the fish the dolphins were pushing to the surface.Presumably the fish were small as the majority of birds were auks and gulls although several Gannets were sat around in the thick of the action. Seemingly they were just  catching their prey (probably sprats} by just ducking their heads beneath the surface.

Image: CB

Image: CB

Image: Holly Dunn

Image: Holly Dunn

Image: Holly Dunn

Eventually the dolphins just seemed to melt away as the Bait ball moved east with the tide. another appeared moving with the tide from the west and passing by, but this time seemed to be attracting porpoises although no pic's of them. 

I have been watching from Strumble for over thirty years and it was only in the late 90's we started to see Common Dolphins occasionally in the summer. but Common Dolphins from the shore in Winter is a very recent development. Uncommon you might say!