Blue whale rolling over like a puppy

Continuing with the amazing blue whale encounters that I had in 2012, this was was a very special one that I still remember well. It was an encounter with a particularly calm and curious blue whale, displaying some unusual behaviours that I had never seen before, or again since. The whale kept surfacing right alongside our rubber boat, which was about one third the length of the whale itself! The whale kept rolling over onto its side, raising one pectoral fin in the air and even bringing its eye out of the water. You can actually see the eye in some of the photos that I took. I wonder if this whale was looking back at us. This whale made me think of a puppy rolling over and it still puts a smile on my face today.

Blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) pectoral fin

Calm spring days with dolphins

This is the time of the year in the Azores that the weather starts to calm down, with fewer storms and calmer and warmer waters in general. When you're lucky, occasionally you get some days that look more like the middle of summer, rather than spring. These glassy waters are amazing for seeing dolphins in:

Common dolphin (Delphinus delphis) in perfect calm water

"Dark edition" common dolphin, lacking the characteristic yellow colour

Pilot whale (Globicephala sp.)

A calm day on the ocean in the Azores

My best blue whale tails in the Azores

Every year in the spring, blue whales migrate through the Azores. I feel very lucky to have seen many blue whales, but I still often think that many people never have the chance to see even one of these majestic giants in their lifetime. 2012 was by far the best year for blue whale sightings, with a record peak seen in March. This was also the year that I got to see the best tail moments. I noticed over the years that there were blue whale "tail years" and "no tail years". This is probably related to the depth that their food (krill) is at. 

The highest blue whale tail I ever saw!

Sleek and silvery in the spring sun light

Blue whale head

A giant whale waterfall