Isla San Pedro Martir
Outside our windows this morning, we were greeted by the curious fly-bys of numerous juvenile brown and blue-footed booby birds. The island of San Pedro Martir sits almost equal distance from the peninsula and the mainland and is home to thousands of birds at some time or another.
The best way to really get up close and personal to many of the inhabitants of this island is by Zodiac. We peered into ancient rock grottos, and many were occupied by booby birds that did not flinch at our presence. The red shelled Sally light foot crabs kept their distance at the edge of the waterline. Above our heads, the sky was white as masses of birds flew in various directions. It’s a wonder that they didn’t collide with one another!
Shortly after a delicious lunch which consisted of paella, refreshing gazpacho soup and other delectable goodies, we spotted a group of over a hundred active common dolphins. They raced toward the ship, leaping high out of the water, disappeared below us and continued in the same direction as if we had never been there.
As we continued to scan the waters ahead of us, the distant blows of yet another marine mammal were spotted. As we approached, we got a better look and identified these as fin whales because of the asymmetrical pigmentation of the lower jaw.
The wind had picked up since our departure from San Pedro Martir but started to taper off which made our search for other marine mammals easier. Soon after searching the horizon, we spotted a blow and then several more followed. Even from a distance, we could identify these massive marine mammals by the angle of their spouts – sperm whales! The sperm whale is the largest of the toothed whales and was most likely feeding on Humboldt squid in this region where the water is very deep.
This topped off our last day and brought our day time activities to an end. I couldn’t think of a more perfect way to end our passage through the Gulf of California.
Outside our windows this morning, we were greeted by the curious fly-bys of numerous juvenile brown and blue-footed booby birds. The island of San Pedro Martir sits almost equal distance from the peninsula and the mainland and is home to thousands of birds at some time or another.
The best way to really get up close and personal to many of the inhabitants of this island is by Zodiac. We peered into ancient rock grottos, and many were occupied by booby birds that did not flinch at our presence. The red shelled Sally light foot crabs kept their distance at the edge of the waterline. Above our heads, the sky was white as masses of birds flew in various directions. It’s a wonder that they didn’t collide with one another!
Shortly after a delicious lunch which consisted of paella, refreshing gazpacho soup and other delectable goodies, we spotted a group of over a hundred active common dolphins. They raced toward the ship, leaping high out of the water, disappeared below us and continued in the same direction as if we had never been there.
As we continued to scan the waters ahead of us, the distant blows of yet another marine mammal were spotted. As we approached, we got a better look and identified these as fin whales because of the asymmetrical pigmentation of the lower jaw.
The wind had picked up since our departure from San Pedro Martir but started to taper off which made our search for other marine mammals easier. Soon after searching the horizon, we spotted a blow and then several more followed. Even from a distance, we could identify these massive marine mammals by the angle of their spouts – sperm whales! The sperm whale is the largest of the toothed whales and was most likely feeding on Humboldt squid in this region where the water is very deep.
This topped off our last day and brought our day time activities to an end. I couldn’t think of a more perfect way to end our passage through the Gulf of California.
