Dolphin Watching Part 1

For Mike's birthday, I found a half off coupon for Dana Wharf Whale/Dolphin Watching on Goupon.  We have been trying to get down there, but we weren't able to go until December 10th.  Our friends the Leavitt's were kind enough to keep our kids.  It was sunny and in the 70's when we left our house, but as we got closer to Dana Point, we started getting into fog.  I wish I would have known it was going to be cold and foggy and I would have brought a hat and gloves.  We were hoping that we would still be able to go out and be able to see anything.  The captain told us that it had been foggier and colder the day before and they didn't find anything until the end of the trip.  He was hoping the better conditions would give us better luck.  He took pictures of all the groups on the boat and joked that that act would bring us luck.  Despite the fog, the water was very calm and smooth.  We had been on the boat for about 10 minutes and were only about a mile and a half out of the harbor, and we spotted something.  It was a large pod of dolphins.  We all went to the front of the boat.  The dolphins were everywhere.  We were surrounded, almost as far as we could see, by choppy water.


The dolphins were jumping all around us.  It was amazing.  They were dodging in and out under the boat.  As we were going along with them, the captain changed his original estimate of there being a thousand dolphins swimming in this pod.  Within a minute or so, he changed his estimate to thousands of dolphins.  He called it a mega pod.  It is extremely uncommon to see this many dolphins together.  Apparently for every dolphin you see, there are 7 you don't see.  On the boat they have a fish finder.  It showed that there were massive amounts of fin fish or anchovies and sardines in the area and that the dolphins were following them.  We were only in 150 to 250 feet of water.  The meter also showed a large mass on the bottom of the ocean.  The captains could see the dolphins diving down to the bottom eating whatever it was and then coming back to the surface.  The guy driving the boat has been a captain for 28 years and he had never seen that.  I only wish that the sky was clear and sunny so the water would have been clear and then we could have seen all the dolphins in the water everywhere.  I apologize in advance for the wobbly camera work.  It is incredibly difficult on a moving boat with quickly moving subjects.


The captain said that dolphins have amazing sonar and so don't hit each other or the boat.  They actually search out boats because they are able to coast along from the wave the boat creates.  They are essentially surfing.  You could see them playing in the wave, turning sideways and upside down.  Some were playing and jumping out of the water all the way.  The captain was full of facts about the Common Dolphin.  They are called Common because they are found in every ocean in the world.  The dolphins born in this pod will stay in this pod for the 20 or so years that they live.   Also, these dolphins will never be seen with another species of dolphins.  However, they have been known to "play" with whales.  Apparently if we were all to jump in the water with the dolphins, their sonar is good enough to practically see through us.  They would be able to tell which person was a male or female.  They also would be able to tell if someone was pregnant and would probably send a midwife dolphin to stay with and protect the pregnant woman.  While we were crossing through their pod, we came across what was probably their maternity pod.  There were lots and lots of baby dolphins swimming with their mothers.  A dolphin is pregnant for 9 to 10 months.  Then the baby stays with it's mother for 3 years.  The captain also pointed out that the dolphins like to "practice" getting pregnant.  He says "practice" because usually there are children on board, but dolphins are like humans in that they enjoy practicing.  They are apparently not monogamous though.   

 

In the distance you can see where the water gets smooth.  All the choppy water up until then is dolphins.

We stayed and watched the dolphins for a while.  Actually we followed them down the coast for a good ways.  Then we voted that we wanted to leave this large group and see if we could maybe find a gray whale.  *Scroll down to see more pictures and the videos of the trip! However, the pictures and video do not do this justice.  Check out the next post for the rest of our trip.*

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com