Dicerorhinus
Well-Known Member
A Blue whale has to be something everyone who posts here would love to see. Can you elaborate a little on the experience? Any idea how large the individual was?
Wild Animals in the Wild!
- Thread starter Dicerorhinus
- Start date
A Blue whale has to be something everyone who posts here would love to see. Can you elaborate a little on the experience? Any idea how large the individual was?
The California Channel Islands National Park is off the coast of Ventura County and Santa Barbara County. From about July to October there is a upwelling current that creates conditions for mass plankton growth which draws in blue whales and humpback whales.
It is reputed to be one of the best places in the world to see blue whales reliably, and the national park's concessionaire has regular excursions out to see the blue and humpback whales when they are around:
Blue Whale & Humpback Whale Watching in the Santa Barbara Channel, Ventura, CA
I went out in 2005 and we saw at least 5 blue whales and 20+ humpbacks. At one point we were surrounded by both species. I remember watching one blue whale dive and it seemed like it took forever relative to grey whales because it was so big. I don't honestly know how large, but seemed at least 80 feet long.
I hope everybody knows websites birdforum.net and mammalwatching.com which discuss wild animal watching.
There is lots of good nature tours which allow one to see many wild species. Sometimes I feel a bit ashamed that seeing wild Jaguar or Tiger is possible to anybody no matter knowledge of animals, field skills or fitness, who just paid amount of money.
Perhaps more interesting are places where you can realistically see wild animals on your own without special tour. There are places where casual tourist can see amazing species, Red Panda in China, Maned Wolf in Brazil, Puma in Chile etc.
There is lots of good nature tours which allow one to see many wild species. Sometimes I feel a bit ashamed that seeing wild Jaguar or Tiger is possible to anybody no matter knowledge of animals, field skills or fitness, who just paid amount of money.
Perhaps more interesting are places where you can realistically see wild animals on your own without special tour. There are places where casual tourist can see amazing species, Red Panda in China, Maned Wolf in Brazil, Puma in Chile etc.
My own wild cetacean list:
Atlantic Bottle-nosed Dolphin (Wales/Tenerife)
Short-beaked Common Dolphin (Wales)
Short-finned Pilot Whale (Tenerife)
Common Porpoise (Wales)
Humpback Whale (Dominica)
Oooh - that's a very good one!
Atlantic Bottle-nosed Dolphin (Wales/Tenerife)
Short-beaked Common Dolphin (Wales)
Short-finned Pilot Whale (Tenerife)
Common Porpoise (Wales)
Humpback Whale (Dominica)
Oooh - that's a very good one!
I'd swap it for a humpback or blue whale in a heartbeat 
Only reason I know exactly what it was is the fact it kept pace on the surface with the boat we were on for about 60 seconds, more than enough time to get a good look at it - and even though I was only 12 at the time, I already knew my cetaceans
Only reason I know exactly what it was is the fact it kept pace on the surface with the boat we were on for about 60 seconds, more than enough time to get a good look at it - and even though I was only 12 at the time, I already knew my cetaceans
Sperm Whales at Kaikoura were brilliant- with the spectacular backdrop of the mountainous coast too.
Also saw Hector's Dolphins here.
Have seen Humpback Whale also- I would rate Sperm Whale the more impressive though.
For me it's hard to beat the humpbacks, they are so active. All the sperm whale did was come up, gasp for 10 mins and then dive - with enough warning to get the cliche 'tail with water running off' photo though.
If I went again I'd do the albatrosses again, and again...
Yes that's exactly what (all) the Sperm Whales do there! When they are at (or just under) the surface I think its called 'rebreathing' or something like that before they go down again with the tail flukes upending. But I was brought up with 'Moby Dick' and knowing this was a real life 'Moby Dick' made it a very special experience.
jbnbsn99
Well-Known Member
Moby Dick was based on a real life whale known as "Mocha Dick," a mostly white Spermaceti. Glad to see there's another Moby-Dick fan on here.
In the film Gregory Peck as Captain Ahab, strapped to a dummy Whale and shouting and cursing his head off is pretty amusing, but its a grand story.
Not sure if we're supposed to be sticking to categories but 2 yrs ago in Cyprus I was snorkelling and I came across an octopus, not rare or anything but I really enjoyed the experience, I hung around and was fascinated watching it, going from place to place, changing colour as it moved over different surfaces, then swooshing through the water. I even found it again after lunch, when it finally settled down in a depression in a rock, tucked itself up and matched to the rock I couldn't see it even though I knew it was there - I was glad I had not stood on it!
Panthera Puss
Well-Known Member
Although this thread has moved beyond carnivores, I hope some of you might be interested in my experience of trekking for Snow Leopard sightings in Hemis National Park, Ladakh, northern India, in February-March 2013.
Me and my girlfriend did this organised trip with Exodus; an important factor in choosing this tour company was that we genuinely believe they are concerned with the eco-friendly aspect of eco-tourism, helping local people to live a traditional, sustainable lifestyle. For instance, water boiling facilities have been installed in villages (the plastic of bottled water is a huge problem in Ladakh); village homestays are supported to provide some income for cash-poor villagers; young men are being employed as guides and porters so they will have interest in their local area and its wildlife - if this pride and knowledge is lost for a generation it may be impossible to get it back in the future. Hemis National Park has reached a point where there is currently zero poaching, because local villagers have realised that (as well as its intrinsic value) wildlife is more valuable alive than dead with the eco-tourists coming in.
In late February we made the terrifying and beautiful flight into Leh, over the Himalayas from Delhi. This time of year is seriously cold of course, but it coincides with Snow Leopard mating season, and Leopard sightings are generally more likely because the cats (and their prey) are forced down from the high peaks by snow and cold.
After a few days acclimatisation for altitudes up to 4,500 metres, we heard from a friend of the tour leader that a Snow Leopard kill had been spotted in the Tarbans valley south of Leh. This was a day earlier than our planned trek into the mountains, but the opportunity was too good to miss, so along with part of the group we took cars to the edge of the National Park, then walked for a couple of hours to the kill site.
The altitude was hard - I was quite ill later in the day after descending back to Leh - but we were rewarded with something I'd dreamed of for twenty years, a Snow Leopard sighting! Not just one cat, but a mating pair (as the experts interpreted it, I thought it might be a mother and last year's cub). The male had made the kill further down the valley and been joined by the female the next day, a Dutch guy (who had amazing footage of the cat on the carcass) told us. We watched this pair for around 5 hours, just sleeping mostly, but sometimes rewarding us with a look around or even a stretch and short wander around.
The next day we trekked to our camp in the Rumbak gorge for 5 days under canvas in temperatures down to around minus 23. Luckily most of us were well-prepared for the cold. The following day (Feb 26th) our guides were out early and reported sightings in the Husing valley. This day would turn out to provide almost ridiculously wonderful wildlife sightings.
First, a mother and cub were spotted beyond a wall, about 200 metres distant, although I 'only' saw one cat - but what a great sighting. Next the pair moved to a high ridge for a spell of resting - I spotted them through the scope as they emerged through a gap in the rocks.
Later in the afternoon, the mother was on the move, sparking activity in the group of watching humans, which included a group from the Snow Leopard Conservancy - among them was the well-known Snow Leopard conservationist Rodney Jackson, who kindly had time to speak to me for a spell and inscribe my girlfriend's log book with a message.
The mother had spotted Bharal (Blue Sheep) on the other side of the valley, and we could follow her (with difficulty through scopes and binoculars) make the long traverse of around a kilometre or so to a position on cliffs above the small herd of Blue Sheep.
My girlfriend had her locked in with binoculars, but I had lost her at this point - disaster! I pleaded for directions. 'Find a rock like a lion's head', she said - unlikely, I thought in this wilderness of rocks - but, yes there it was, exactly as she described. A few moves up the cliff face, and I had the beautiful sight of the female Leopard, stalking her main prey of Blue Sheep.
What followed was extraordinary; the cat had what amounted to a face-off for perhaps a quarter of an hour with first a female then a male Bharal. The cat seemed within pouncing distance, and the tension was almost unbearable - at any moment we could be witnessing a Snow Leopard hunt, not on a BBC documentary (even that would be rare), but in real life! Leopard and sheep were around a corner of outcrop from each other, but eventually we saw the male Bharal stamping his hooves, tail up in alarm mode, so he knew death was literally around the corner from him, and the Leopard's hunt was more or less up from that point.
The sheep skipped off down the cliff face, and the Snow Leopard ascended to a rock to sleep off her mental and physical exertions. This wasn't the end of the day, however, as we later saw the female Leopard retrace her steps to her cub across screes and snow fields, at times calling as she went. Mother and young were re-united, and the last we saw of them was as they disappeared through the gap in the ridge where I had spotted them hours before that morning. The whole day was like a story-book, the day in the life of a Snow Leopard.
After a day of snow (our only bad weather among days of brilliant sunshine), we had yet another Leopard sighting, near the first site in the Tarbans valley. This time in was a lone female. Late in the day back at camp, we could follow her through scopes as she made her way off for the night.
Following a homestay in the village of Rumbak (including a fine Red Fox viewing), our last full day was rewarded with yet another long Snow Leopard sighting. A cat had been reported over the walkie-talkie grapevine back near our camp, and we made a headlong descent down the gorge, having got our mountain legs and lungs now. This cat was a distinctive older male, and again a large group watched him for maybe 4 hours. At the end of the day, he made his way off up the valley, going we know not where. It was a fitting and moving finale to our Snow Leopard sightings. A member of our group has posted a video of this on youtube - see the link below.
Snow leopard - Ladakh - Mar 2013 - Exodus trek - Steve Terry - YouTube
Other wildlife spotted on the trip included Urial, Pica, Yak, Lammergier, Golden Eagle, Choughs, Snow Bunting, Robin Accentor, Himalayan Vulture (?), and no doubt some others I can't bring to mind. Wolves howled one night as we lay in our sleeping bags - this was the most eerie and blood-curdling sound I've ever heard, in fact I hope I never experience anything quite that scary again.
We watched Snow Leopards for an estimated 20 hours, seeing maybe 5 or 6 different individuals. We were incredibly lucky -a wildlife photographer who arrived as we were packing up saw nothing, for instance.
Thanks for reading if you got this far, I hope it was interesting.
Me and my girlfriend did this organised trip with Exodus; an important factor in choosing this tour company was that we genuinely believe they are concerned with the eco-friendly aspect of eco-tourism, helping local people to live a traditional, sustainable lifestyle. For instance, water boiling facilities have been installed in villages (the plastic of bottled water is a huge problem in Ladakh); village homestays are supported to provide some income for cash-poor villagers; young men are being employed as guides and porters so they will have interest in their local area and its wildlife - if this pride and knowledge is lost for a generation it may be impossible to get it back in the future. Hemis National Park has reached a point where there is currently zero poaching, because local villagers have realised that (as well as its intrinsic value) wildlife is more valuable alive than dead with the eco-tourists coming in.
In late February we made the terrifying and beautiful flight into Leh, over the Himalayas from Delhi. This time of year is seriously cold of course, but it coincides with Snow Leopard mating season, and Leopard sightings are generally more likely because the cats (and their prey) are forced down from the high peaks by snow and cold.
After a few days acclimatisation for altitudes up to 4,500 metres, we heard from a friend of the tour leader that a Snow Leopard kill had been spotted in the Tarbans valley south of Leh. This was a day earlier than our planned trek into the mountains, but the opportunity was too good to miss, so along with part of the group we took cars to the edge of the National Park, then walked for a couple of hours to the kill site.
The altitude was hard - I was quite ill later in the day after descending back to Leh - but we were rewarded with something I'd dreamed of for twenty years, a Snow Leopard sighting! Not just one cat, but a mating pair (as the experts interpreted it, I thought it might be a mother and last year's cub). The male had made the kill further down the valley and been joined by the female the next day, a Dutch guy (who had amazing footage of the cat on the carcass) told us. We watched this pair for around 5 hours, just sleeping mostly, but sometimes rewarding us with a look around or even a stretch and short wander around.
The next day we trekked to our camp in the Rumbak gorge for 5 days under canvas in temperatures down to around minus 23. Luckily most of us were well-prepared for the cold. The following day (Feb 26th) our guides were out early and reported sightings in the Husing valley. This day would turn out to provide almost ridiculously wonderful wildlife sightings.
First, a mother and cub were spotted beyond a wall, about 200 metres distant, although I 'only' saw one cat - but what a great sighting. Next the pair moved to a high ridge for a spell of resting - I spotted them through the scope as they emerged through a gap in the rocks.
Later in the afternoon, the mother was on the move, sparking activity in the group of watching humans, which included a group from the Snow Leopard Conservancy - among them was the well-known Snow Leopard conservationist Rodney Jackson, who kindly had time to speak to me for a spell and inscribe my girlfriend's log book with a message.
The mother had spotted Bharal (Blue Sheep) on the other side of the valley, and we could follow her (with difficulty through scopes and binoculars) make the long traverse of around a kilometre or so to a position on cliffs above the small herd of Blue Sheep.
My girlfriend had her locked in with binoculars, but I had lost her at this point - disaster! I pleaded for directions. 'Find a rock like a lion's head', she said - unlikely, I thought in this wilderness of rocks - but, yes there it was, exactly as she described. A few moves up the cliff face, and I had the beautiful sight of the female Leopard, stalking her main prey of Blue Sheep.
What followed was extraordinary; the cat had what amounted to a face-off for perhaps a quarter of an hour with first a female then a male Bharal. The cat seemed within pouncing distance, and the tension was almost unbearable - at any moment we could be witnessing a Snow Leopard hunt, not on a BBC documentary (even that would be rare), but in real life! Leopard and sheep were around a corner of outcrop from each other, but eventually we saw the male Bharal stamping his hooves, tail up in alarm mode, so he knew death was literally around the corner from him, and the Leopard's hunt was more or less up from that point.
The sheep skipped off down the cliff face, and the Snow Leopard ascended to a rock to sleep off her mental and physical exertions. This wasn't the end of the day, however, as we later saw the female Leopard retrace her steps to her cub across screes and snow fields, at times calling as she went. Mother and young were re-united, and the last we saw of them was as they disappeared through the gap in the ridge where I had spotted them hours before that morning. The whole day was like a story-book, the day in the life of a Snow Leopard.
After a day of snow (our only bad weather among days of brilliant sunshine), we had yet another Leopard sighting, near the first site in the Tarbans valley. This time in was a lone female. Late in the day back at camp, we could follow her through scopes as she made her way off for the night.
Following a homestay in the village of Rumbak (including a fine Red Fox viewing), our last full day was rewarded with yet another long Snow Leopard sighting. A cat had been reported over the walkie-talkie grapevine back near our camp, and we made a headlong descent down the gorge, having got our mountain legs and lungs now. This cat was a distinctive older male, and again a large group watched him for maybe 4 hours. At the end of the day, he made his way off up the valley, going we know not where. It was a fitting and moving finale to our Snow Leopard sightings. A member of our group has posted a video of this on youtube - see the link below.
Snow leopard - Ladakh - Mar 2013 - Exodus trek - Steve Terry - YouTube
Other wildlife spotted on the trip included Urial, Pica, Yak, Lammergier, Golden Eagle, Choughs, Snow Bunting, Robin Accentor, Himalayan Vulture (?), and no doubt some others I can't bring to mind. Wolves howled one night as we lay in our sleeping bags - this was the most eerie and blood-curdling sound I've ever heard, in fact I hope I never experience anything quite that scary again.
We watched Snow Leopards for an estimated 20 hours, seeing maybe 5 or 6 different individuals. We were incredibly lucky -a wildlife photographer who arrived as we were packing up saw nothing, for instance.
Thanks for reading if you got this far, I hope it was interesting.
Dicerorhinus
Well-Known Member
I think four-and-a-half months on cetaceans is probably long enough. Can we have another Order please Dicerorhinus?
Hix
Hix, you're quite right! my apologies, if we do Monotremes, Marsupials and Primates next it should open the discussion to more members.
Panthera puss, thanks for posting such a great description of a fantastic experience!
Panthera Puss
Well-Known Member
I think they were aware of our presence, but they were generally a few hundred metres distant and always well above us, so I think we were just a vaguely interesting speck in the landscape. The final cat (the one in the video) was a bit closer (still the other side of a gorge though), and did show more signs of noticing us. He also took some interest in a mule train passing in the valley below.
At times it felt as though there were just too many humans around - there could be 20-30 watching when groups merged - but, then again that landscape is so vast that a leopard or human is just a tiny thing. On that point, I should have mentioned how incredible the local guides are at spotting the cats in that wasteland of rock and snow.
Panthera Puss
Well-Known Member
Thanks, I will post some photos when I get the time and a good internet connection!