Luecistic Guillemot

On Wednesday the 15th June, Andy (my crewman) spotted a Luecistic Guillemot on the cliff at Brownsman Island. Andy got himself all excited that he could not get his words out but he was pointing to the area where the bird was and that's I saw it.
I my word, what a beauty.
I have never seen a luecistic guillemot in my life so I was well chuffed, and I don't know if this is a first for the farnes but I suppose someone will be able to tell me.

There is no point in talking about it but here it is........

Time to Jump

Well it's that time of the year again as the Guillemot chicks are starting to jump.
On Tuesday evening, during our sunset cruise we watched the chicks take that leap of faith of the cliff faces and into the water.

I know I have said this before but for those who don't know or those who are new to this blog then this is what happens to the guillemot chicks.

Firstly they are called "Jumplings" and this is simply because they jump of the cliffs around the farne islands. Some from a great height and some as a little wiser than others.

When the jumplings are about two weeks old they are ready to leave the farne islands and head out into the big bad world called the "north sea". They are encouraged by their mother to jump of the cliffs into the water were their father will be waiting from them. He will escort them out to sea where he will teach them how to feed and fend for themselves until they are about five years of age and then they will return to the farnes and look for a partner of their own.
After a year in the north sea growing big and strong, the jumpling starts life on his/her own as their father leaves them and returns to the farnes to prepare for the breeding season once again.

Its a tough old world being a seabird and you have to take your hat of to them for doing it.

You will be probably wondering how the jumpling does not hurt itself it they hit the rocks on their way down. Well they are light enough to bounce and their bones are not properly formed so it does not hurt them. Clever eh.....

Anyway here is a few pictures of those cute jumplings.

 

 

 

Bottlenose Dolphins

I have never blogged about the dolphins so far this year as we have seen them loads and I thought that everyone might get a bit bored of hearing about them.
While on the boat the other day someone asked me if we had seen the dolphins this year. When I replied yes, they said well why have you not blogged about them. When I explained why I was told not to be silly and get some pictures put up.

Since I have put in my place I have decided to obey this person in question and show you all some pictures of these wonderful creatures.

 On a much sadder note we spotted a Bottlenose Dolphin in a bad way on Saturday 4th. I got a call from my friend saying that he had spotted something but he was not sure what. He told me to keep my eyes peeled and let him know if I found anything. Sure enough we saw a lone Bottlenose Dolphin struggling for air and could hardly dive. We slowly put the boat beside her/him to see if there was any net or something that was that was obvious that we could help. Unfortunately there was nothing but lots of scratches which might suggest that she/he had been in a fight, which is not uncommon.
We decided to leave her/him alone as we did not want our guests to see it in a state. It was so hard to leave but what could I do? If she/he had net or rope around there tail then I would have sorted it but sometimes you just have to stay away and let nature sort itself out.

This is when I wished they could give you a sign to let you know what the matter is but this is not the case. I felt very sad leaving and helpless I could not do a thing to save her/him.