Despite the cold weather over the Easter break, I found myself bobbing about in the middle of the ocean off Cornwall watching seals, seabirds and a porpoise! The Cornish coastline is home to an incredible variety of dolphins, porpoises, whales and other fantastic marinelife. The area is very popular for watching marine mammals in their natural environment and should be the only way to see these animals, compared to captivity. Seeing them in their natural environment helps to encourage respect and raise awareness about the species. The basking sharks will soon be visiting also – in 2007 they were spotted in large numbers off Penzance.
Talking about whales, the Marine Connection recently received updated news from our colleagues at Orcalab on Hanson Island, British Columbia with regards to the fuel tanker that sunk in August 2007 in the world’s best known orca habitat – the Ecological Reserve at Robson Bight. Months after the underwater investigation, which showed the tanker almost certainly still full of toxic diesel fuel, no plans for a cleanup before the orcas arrive have been made. This is a very worrying situation and we are asking everyone for their support.
I read with interest about someone in Dalvík, Iceland investigating the feasibility of offering whale watching and undersea tours from a submarine. Apart from the huge costs involved in such a project I am not sure what the whales would think of it as they swim along. Apparently similar operations in other countries have been very popular among tourists but they are in warmer countries like Hawaii and Spain and don’t involve diving down to a depth of 300 metres as planned in Iceland. To deliver profits it would need to attract 15,000 tourists per year but its not even got off the drawing board yet!
Until next time, happy spring days!
Liz
