Strumble Diary 17/01/2025

 It was back to Strumble today after my trip to Ramsey yesterday. A very dull overcast morning though but at least it was reasonably calm. I was very early in the tide and had to wait a long while for my first sighting which was of three commons way off to the NE with an almost simultaneous sighting of a porpoise off mackerel Point. As the tide dropped away and the tide race picked up more sightings followed over a forty minute period. A short window of action on a strong tide with a dozen or so porpoise feeding in the race. In this dozen or so was an animal with distinct markings, something I'm always happy to capture. 

Playing Away 16/01/2025

 I had the chance today to leave the comfort of Strumble and join the survey team on a trip to Ramsey Sound. We met up at the Ocean Lab at 09.30 with myself, interns Jack and Hannah, and volunteer Dawn in my car leaving Fran with volunteers Ben and Maddie in her car. A thick mist most of the way to St Davids but thankfully by the time we walked to the old copper mines it had mostly cleared. With the kit set up we waited for the porpoise to transit the sound from north to south on the dropping tide.

Maddie was the star spotter of the day, calling numerous sightings as the tide started ripping through the sound, with Ben, Jack and myself on cameras trying our best to keep up in the by now surging tide race. Long lenses and close fast moving subjects only on the surface for a brief moment make for trying and challenging shooting but I think between the three of us we managed fairly well with all three of us capturing some porps at least.

The first porpoise was a marked animal that I have seen many times at Strumble with a very distinctive notch on the back of the dorsal fin. Several sightings followed but the action didn't last long as they were all quickly washed through in the speeding tide race. There was a lull for a while before we spotted another four animals later in the survey. On processing the images I found I'd captured another marked animal which was new to me and I'm sure will be new to the catalogue too.

 

Strumble Diary 15-01-2025

 I was quite excited about going out this morning. Sunny forecast, tides were right so expectations were high. I arrived around 09.15 and set up the camera. Lots of bird action, especially off the Strumble Bank as the ebb flow stirred things up. Just after 10am a pod of some forty or so Commons moved across east to west giving me great views in the bright morning sun. Fifteen minutes later a more distant pod 20+ commons going NE-SW kept my attention until they were far off in the distance. Third sighting was a smaller but even more distant group of commons due north at about two miles. I didn't see them for long as they moved further out. 

As the tide race picked up the porpoise started to move in but they were playing hard to get, just barely breaking surface as they sped up the tide race. Just after 11am the survey team arrived and we then spotted good numbers of porpoise, some travelling through and others feeding. The sightings continued all through the two hour session and the bonus for me was two marked animals one of which I recognised but hadn't seen for a few years. I'm sure it was "Chopper"  but a match against the catalogue will confirm that, or not. It has a very distinctive gash between the dorsal fin and the tail, and although not fully visible I feel it's enough to confirm the ID.

Strumble Diary: 12/1/25. Carrie gets the porp action!

Sea Trust Photo ID Tuesday team leader, Carrie Garner, followed up Maddies super-pod report from yesterday in the hope of some super-pod pics, Sadly the Common Dolphins did not return but the Porpoises were good value. She was joined by Maddie and regular Photo ID volunteers Andy Wise, Dawn and off duty staff member, Lloyd Nelmes.

They were showing throughout from the afternoon from 13.00 until sunset began to darken the short winters day. The porpoises were very active, breaching and also displaying what looked like mating behaviour! Carrie got these great images, see below...

The two middle images look very much like mating attempts, fantastic photography Carrie!

Strumble diary 11/1/25. Strumble superpod from volunteer Maddie!

Yesterday just before Sunset, Maddie was treated to "100's" of Common Dolpins stretching throughout the sea area, visible from the Strumble lookout accompanied by many feeding gannets. Although !00's is not an exact figure, in my book anything over a couple of hundred is a superpod. This time last year (16th Jan) the Humpback Whale appeared in Fishguard Bay accompanied by a similar amount of Common Dolphins, Heres hoping for a repeat! 

Another report from old mate and Strumbler Steve Berry this morning was of 50 + Commons off Penanglas , matybe not a superpod but probably a part of it!

Strumble Diary 07/01/2025

 A rising tide and an early start today with the light still very poor as Iarrived just after 9am. It steadily brightened up though and by the time the survey team arrived at 11am Things were a lot better and I'd seen several porpoise to this point but only managed to capture one in the lens. Together we spotted several more and I'm glad to say I managed to capture at least some of them. One marked animal seen before with a sort of skin tag on the back edge of the dorsal fin was a bonus today and will help the catalogue of sightings grow.

There's very little to no mobile signal at Strumble lookout so I was surprised to hear my mobile bleep and on looking saw a general request for assistance in the cafe at the Ocean Lab, so with enough pics in the bag for this blog entry I packed my kit away said my "Good byes" and headed for the Lab cafe to help out. So hence the late posting but here it is.