Dolphin Encounter Update April 2012

16/05/12

Welcome to the Dolphin Encounter® update for April 2012. 

The weather this month has been fantastic and we have basked in glorious sunshine with hot, calm, sunny days. The weather this month has probably been the best we’ve encountered all season with most parts of the country enjoying the warmest April on record. At the end of the month, we bore the brunt of a brief storm which adorned the Seaward Kaikoura Mountains with snow creating a beautiful and memorable backdrop. 

The fabulous weather has been coupled with lots of dolphins. Pod numbers have ranged from 200-800 dolphins and they’ve been located very close to South Bay harbour. We’ve been amazed at how consistent the dolphins have been with travel times ranging from as little as 5-15 minutes in areas such as the Kahutara, Racecourse Reef and Picnic Reef (not more than a couple of kilometres travel). The close proximity to the harbour has enabled us to spend more time with the dolphins due to the reduced travel time. The dolphin’s acrobatic prowess has even attracted the attention of passers-by who have observed them from the beach and roadside as well as kayakers and paddle-boarders paddling out to take a closer look. 

The dolphins have exhibited very inquisitive behaviour playing not only with confident swimmers but also those a little more hesitant at getting into the water. Our new noodle belts and other buoyancy devices have been a huge success in encouraging even the most nervous of swimmers into the water. There’s a great sense of achievement for these swimmers, not only for getting into the water, but feeling confident enough to look down and enjoy the dolphins.  

As our 5.30am tours drew to a close at the end of the month, we’ve been busy preparing ourselves for winter, bringing out the neoprene gloves and boots as the water temperature slowly lowers. The water temperature continues to drop and now sits at a reasonable 14°C. 

Other marine life this month has included the occasional sightings of Hector’s dolphins. These have been seen playing with the duskies and can either be very playful or highly elusive so it’s a real treat to get a close up look at them. The dolphins have also taken great delight in playing with a few humpback whales which have started to migrate northwards from Antarctica towards the tropics and we saw at least 4 whales passing through towards the end of the month. As winter approaches, we also see a typical seasonal movement as sperm whales start to move inshore. Some sightings have been in close proximity to the dolphins, who haveraced off to harass their larger cousins. This incidental sighting is definitely an added bonus as we always state that you never know what to expect on each of our tours! 

Another bonus at the end of the month was a brief sighting of a small pod of orca or killer whales. The mere presence of these orca sent the dolphins racing south at high speed. We haven’t seen orca on our tours for 3 months now so it was a great surprise to see them and caused a huge amount of excitement. Orca have been travelling through the area over the last few months, but reports from commercial fishermen indicate that the orca have been travelling offshore and away from the area that we’ve been operating in. The crew unfortunately didn’t recognise the orca as none of them appeared to have any distinctive markings on their dorsal fins. 

At Dolphin Encounter we have some new underwater digital cameras to enhance swimmers memories of their experiences with the dolphins. These cameras have both HD camera and video functions and we recommend swimmers utilise both functions so that they can put the video mode on and actually see the dolphins with their own eyes rather than through a screen. The price for hire remains at a reasonable $40 including a DVD and we’re hoping for great quality photos and movies. 

That’s all our news for now. So, till next time..........

Tour Photos

» Buoyancy Aids Buoyancy Aids © Dolphin Encounter We have a selection of buoyancy aids for our swimmers if required.	» Hector's and Duskies Hector's and Duskies © Dolphin Encounter Hector's dolphin with the dusky dolphins.	» Dolphin Swimming Dolphin Swimming © Dolphin Encounter Dolphin swimming.
» Humpback Humpback © Dolphin Encounter We are seeming to see more and more humpbacks, certainly more than we did 20 yeras ago.	» Orca Orca © Dolphin Encounter Orca were only spotted once on our tours in April.	» Dolphins Running Dolphins Running © Dolphin Encounter Dusky dolphins running as a pod of orca approach.
» Underwater Camera Underwater Camera © Dolphin Encounter Hiring underwater cameras proves very popular for those who don't have their own camera.	» Underwater Camera Underwater Camera © Dolphin Encounter A great picture taken by one of our swimmers with the digital camera.	» Dolphin Eye Dolphin Eye © Dolphin Encounter The great weather in April meant we had a lot of calm days with good water visibility.

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