Madeira Pelagic Expedition marked by light wind, June 2015

A pelagic marked by the very light wind, which is normally not good for seabirds, though we managed to watch all the aimed species, once again! Cory's shearwater Calonectris borealis and Bulwer's petrel Bulweria bulwerii are present everyday as these are the most common seabirds around.

8th June 2015 Light wind from North up to 10 knots, swell up to 2 meters and waves up to 1 meter.
1 Pterodroma sp. - too far to ID
2 Zino's Petrel Pterodroma madeira
Great Skua Stercorarius skua
1 White-faced Storm Petrel Pelagodroma marina hypoleuca
1 European Storm Petrel Hydrobates pelagicus - very evasive bird, only identified by its jizz
1 Madeiran Storm Petrel Oceanodroma castro - brief view as it flew pass the chum slick
Manx shearwater Puffinus puffinus puffinus - approximately 12 birds
1 Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis

Atlantic spotted dolphin Stenella frontalis
Short-beaked common dolphin Delphinus delphis

9th June 2015 - Lighter wind than yesterday with only 5 to 8 knots of wind from North
On the way to the chum
1 Fea's petrel Pterodroma feae/deserta
1 Pterodroma sp. - too far to ID
1 Zino's Petrel Pterodroma madeira

While drifting along the chum
2 Fea's petrel Pterodroma feae/deserta
Manx shearwater Puffinus puffinus puffinus - approximately 12 birds
4 Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis

Loggerhead Turtle Caretta caretta

12th June 2015 - The wind kept disappearing and we even postponed this last trip one day though we did not get more than 6 knots of wind from Northeast and a very flat sea...
Arctic Tern Sterna paradisaea - 1st summer bird
Wilson's Storm-petrel Oceanites oceanicus
3 Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis

Short-finned pilot whale Globicephala macrorhynchus
Common Bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus
Atlantic spotted dolphin Stenella frontalis

Blue shark Prionace glauca - an amazing show of a 3 meters shark eating the chum!