If you're fascinated with whales and dolphins, and live off a coastline that harbors over a third of all cetacean species in the world , you'd be crazy not trying to go out there and see them. If you don't live here, let me introduce you to 15 species you can see off Peru. Maybe, you'd like to come to Peru and see some of them.

We are diversifying our business. Our love and your love for whales and dolphins can together build a new resource for whale/dolphin lovers and researchers alike.  How? We shall get our own boat, and you could be our sponsor with a payback that vastly surmount your modest investment.  I will give you a special offer which make you eligible to watch cetaceans at sea for FREE in Peru for the rest of your life plus many other bonus features. Interested? Scroll to the bottom. If not - scroll to the pictures.

Some background to whale-watching in Peru

We have been running pelagic birdwatching trips since 2000 in Peru. Few people know that these trips originally were planned to be whale-watching trips.  I didn't think there was enough market of visiting birders to Lima to make pelagic birding trips with a profit. Whales and dolphins were different. Everyone likes them and would like to see them in the wild. Lima with 8-9 million people should have a click  that may be interested and afford the trips.

I was right on one of the assumptions. There were a lot of people interested in whale-watching, BUT few people could afford the cost of 90 dollars.

The best strategy to at least see some cetaceans is  to make a transect to the 1000m depth line at around 32 nmiles in the hope of seeing some Cetaceans on the way.  You see, the cetaceans in Lima don't have specific spots you can go to and expect to see one. Most are transient varying with the local occurrence of anchoveta banks and upwelling events bringing nutrients closer to the coast.  We saw cetaceans on every trip, but different species every time. If there are patterns of occurrence these are not very obvious.

Birders on the other hand loved the transect and saw all their target birds and more. This allowed us to raise the price of the pelagics in order to also go out when there were few birders on board and sell space to occasional Peruvian non-birders who just want to see some cetaceans at a lower price. It became somewhat a mission to allow Peruvians enjoy the wonders of nature.

Over the years we have had a lot of interesting observations.  In this blogpost I will go through some of the species we have seen during our trips.

Dolphins

We have seen five species of dolphins on our pelagics from Lima.  Bottlenose Dolphin Tursiops truncatus and Dusky Dolphin Lagenorhynchus obscurus are the most numerous. Common Dolphin has recently been split to two species. The Short-beaked Common Dolphin Delphinus delphis and Long-beaked Common Dolphin Delphinus capensis. There are also a few records of Risso's Dolphin Grampus griseus.

Dusky Dolphin Lagenorhynchus obscurus

The dusky Dolphin is well known for being very acrobatic in the wild making high 3 meter leaps out of the water. They can gather in huge flocks of over 100 individuals around the schools of anchoveta. We see duskies on most of our trips.

Identification: This is a small dolphin (around 1.6m) with an extremely short beak. Easily recognized by its black and light gray pattern and the triangular falcate dorsal fin with a pale thumb-mark.

Bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus

Flipper as we all know it. Seeing wild Bottle-nosed Dolphins away from the aquariums is a treat.  They often approach the boat to bow-ride. We see Bottle-nosed Dolphins on most of our trips.

Identification: They reach around 3m and thus larger than the other frequently encountered dolphins species. The prominent falcate dorsal fin and even grayish coloration are other good field marks.

Short-beaked Common Dolphin Delphinus delphis

The Short-beaked Common Dolphin is usually found in warmer waters. The photo is taken in Tumbes. It may be seen in Lima during Niño years or during the summer (January-February).
Identification: Short beak of course, but the other good mark is the mustard yellow side-patch and crisp contrast.

Long-beaked Common Dolphin Delphinus capensis

Long-beaked Common Dolphin is the Common Dolphin most frequently seen on Lima Pelagics. It is bound to cold water of the Humboldt Current.

Identification: Longer bill. The distinct side pattern is shared with Short-beaked Common Dolphin, although the Long-beaked Common Dolphin has  more diffused pattern and the side patch more greenish-yellow in color.

Risso's Dolphin Grampus griseus

Not very common in our waters, only a few records in Lima at deep water in June-July. Risso's Dolphin can be found near the shelf edge where they feed on squid.

Identification: Identified on the heavily scared body. It has indistinct beak and a rounded head. The prominent (up to 50cm) dorsal fin makes it possible to mistake it for Bottle-nosed Dolphin and even Killer Whale at a distance, but the scared body usually gives it away. The scars are supposed to be caused by the teeth of other Risso's Dolphins or the squid they pray on.

Burmeister's Purpoise Phocoena spinipinnis

Not a true dolphin, but a Porpoise. Burmeister's Porpoise is supposedly one of the most common cetaceans in South America, yet it is very difficult too see, because it does not surface very conspicuously. Usually only the dorsal fin is seen. We have one record from the Lima pelagics in July close to Callao.  It is best looked for in very calm seas.
Identification: Small size and the triangular dorsal fin with small tubercles on the leading edge.

Baleen Whales

Lima has proved good to find baleen whales. The following species are found regularly. Bryde's Whale Balenoptera edeni, Blue Whale  Balaenopteridae musculus, Fin Whale Balaenoptera physalus and  Sei Whale Balaenoptera borealis.

Bryde's Whale Balenoptera edeni

Bryde's Whale is resident off Lima and the Peruvian coast. This 11-15 m roqual can be seen year around, but since it often keep low, has a short blow, and does not show the tail when diving, it is easiest to see in calm conditions (normally November- April).

Identification:

Certainly, not straight forward to identify as its dorsal fin is very similar to Sei Whale.  The top photo is by no means certain to species, but as it was taken in February when Sei Whale would more likely be found Sub-antartic waters. The only way to safely identify Bryde's whale is observing the three parallel ridges on the head.  See the picture below.

Bryde's Whale can be difficult to see well as it often is very erratic under water. It is hard to predict where it will show up next time it surfaces.

Sei Whales Balaenoptera borealis

Sei Whale only occurs on passage in Peruvian waters. Taken into account that it is so hard to identify it is very little known about its presence in Peru.  The above may or may not be a Sei Whale with a damaged dorsal fin - or it is again a Bryde's Whale.

Identification: Sei Whale is 12-16 m and only has one central ridge on the head which separates it from Bryde's Whale this way.  Unlike other Rorqual they often feed just under the surface, which results in that the blow hole and the dorsal fin appear simultaneously.

Blue Whale  Balaenopteridae musculus

Blue Whale is a magnificent animal. I have seen it a few times in Peru. Apparently there are two forms occurring. The normal 29 meter giant and a smaller pygmy form. This may or may not be the same Pygmy Blue Whale subspecies from the Indian Ocean.  I have seen both forms of Blue Whale going out from Lima.

Identification: Both forms have sky blue skin and a very tiny dorsal fin.  The bluish skin is typically covered with pale blotches. The normal Blue Whale often announce it presence with the huge blow that can reach 12m.  It has a long cylinder like body. Maybe the best way to illustrate how big this form of Blue Whale is checking out the BBC video with David Attenborough as narrator.

The mysterious pygmy Blue Whale of Peru.

The Pymgy Blue Whale occurs normally in the Indian Ocean and the West Pacific and is named as a subspecies of Blue Whale  and is sometimes is regarded as a full species.  In Nov 2005 researchers from  NOAA and Hadoram Shirihai recorded and photographed a pymgy form of Blue Whale about 300 nmiles off the Peruvian coast.  In an online detailed report about Cockillaria Petrels and the pygmy blue whale the characteristics  of this animal was registered.  Check the photo of the head of this Pygmy Blue Whale.
They noted an animal which was shorter, had a shorter rostrum and instead of the long tubular shape this looked like a GIANT tadpole.

Preparing for this article Ignacio Garcia Godos gave me the photo above. This Blue Whale was recorded between Hawaii and Manta, Ecuador on a NOAA expedition that Ignacio attended in 2005. It was supposed to be a regular blue whale.  It may be an artifact of the angle, but does this not correspond very well to the description above of the Pygmy Blue Whale?

In Nov 2007 on one of our pelagics we were around 30 nmiles out at sea and we were puzzled by 3-4 whales such as the one in the photo below. They had given away their presence from a distance with several blows, but these were short 3-4 meters high only and not at all the powerful plumes of the regular Blue Whale. At first I thought they were Bryde's Whale because of small size similar to that of Bryde's and that it kept low in the water and totally disappeared for a long while indicating deep submersions.
At closer range we could see that it lacked any pale mottling like the larger subspecies of Blue Whale as the photo by Mike Danzenbaker taken on this trip indicates.

Koen van Waerebeck thinks it may represent a non-described taxon that is resident in Peruvian Waters. Isn't that exciting?

Take note that both this record and the record by Hadoram and NOAA team happened in November.  We are organizing a deep sea-pelagic on Nov 6, 2011 - if anyone is interested joining us on a search for the "mysterious pygmy blue whale of Peru"

Pygmy Fin Whale Balaenoptera physalus ssp nov?

Whalewatching in Peru is great because one may make important discoveries merely by taking photos and record position. In March 2007  we had 11 whales surrounding the boat.  I did not know what they were and therefore took lots of photos.

Identification: Prominent dorsal fin. Eventually, I could see the right side of the lower jaw, which is white and the best field mark for Fin Whale. But there were features that did not fit. They were dark in color without the pale line on top that normal Fin Whale is supposed to have. And they were small. Most individuals were around 14-16 m and a few larger up to 18-20 meters. Normal Finwhales are around 24 meters.

Again I sent my pictures to Koen Van Waerebeck.  He confirmed that this must be the Fin Whale which was hunted in the 20th century off Peru and thus most likely resident.  Koen wrote up a manuscript  (still in press) that was presented at the International Whaling Commission meeting in Anchorage in May 2007. I appeared as co-author by simply providing the pictures and the coordinates.

Other Whales

The other whales possible on Lima Pelagic whalewatching trips are Humpback Whale Megaptera novaeangliae, Sperm whale Physeter macrocephalus, Killer Whale Orcinus orca, Short-finned Pilot Whale Globicephala macrorhynchus and  Peruvian Beaked Whale Mesoplodon peruvianus.

Humpback Whale Megaptera novaeangliae

The photo above was from  a November pelagic  in 2003. Whalewatching outfitters love Humpbacks - because they always put on a great show.  Although there is no breeding area in Lima or permanent winter population, they are often encountered on passage and sometimes they put on a show like this.

Identification: It is the easiest of all the big whales to identify. Long flippers with lots of white, showing huge fluke when diving with various amounts of white. No tail is like on other tail why tails should be photographed and deposited at one of the fluke picture repositories.  A friend of mine Ignacio Garcia-Godos has started a fluke catalogue for Peru.  We hope our continuous whalewatching pelagic trips will make new additions to the catalogue.
The dorsal fin is another good field mark as it has a hump in front of the fin. Hence its name.

Sperm Whale Physeter macrocephalus

Sperm Whales are found far away from shore at the continental shelf where they feed on giant squid. It is always an exciting whale to look out for near our turn around point.

Identification:

Very large toothed whale reaching up to 18m. The blow is directed forward. Very short dorsal fin,  Show its totally  black fluke when diving.

Killer Whale Orcinus orca

I have only seen Killer Whale once from Lima. It is a bit surprising that it is not more common regarding the enormous amounts of sea-lions present at Isla Palomino and at sea. I have been told it may be because of the straight coastline of Peru, there are few bays or sheltered areas where they can rest-

Identification: Male virtually unmistakable. The lack and w2hite pattern and the 6 ft (1.8m) tall dorsal fin gives it away immediately. The female with a smaller dorsal fin may be confused with Risso's Dolphin or False Killer Whale (which is possible off Peru, but which we still have to find).

Short-finned Pilot Whale Globicephala macrorhynchus

We only have two records of this Pilot Whale. Once on the same trip we saw Sperm Whale at the deep sea and once in Tumbes.

Identification

Peruvian Beaked Whale Mesoplodon peruvianus

This little known small Beaked Whale was described in 1991 from a carcass on a beach in Peru by Reyes, Mead and Waerebeck. Additional specimens have been secured from sharkfishing by catch. Also, several sightings at sea between Mexico and Peru.  In July 2006 an unidentified small beaked whale was seen by Dylan Walker and myself on a pelagic tour from Callao.  We only saw a short triangular dorsal fin surrounded by a blackish back. We saw no white or other pale markings.

Identification: This is a very small beaked Whale. Only 5 meters long. That the male looks like the picture above is a hypothesis based on observations in the wild of individuals that look like this with a white field over the back. Presumably they are males Peruvian Beaked Whale, but it has not been proven. There are no specimens of the male. The female is uniform slaty in color and has a small but distinct melon on the head.

Special offer for whale and dolphin lovers.

Now you know what is awaiting you when you come to Peru and do whale-watching with us.  As mentioned at the beginning of this post, you have the possibility to be able to go on our whale-watching and pelagic birding trips for the rest of your life for free.  We are investing in our own boat.  You will help us as You'll become a member in:

Kolibri Expeditions VIP Club

Your investment is:

500 US$

Seems like a lot of money?  By taking a few trips with us in Peru and elsewhere in South America, as Kolibri VIP you will regain you investment through a series of benefits. You don't loose, we don't have to borrow money and a permanent resource for nature lovers is created and puts Peru on the whale-watching map. Here are the benefits:

• One free space on a Lima pelagic/whalewatching once we have the boat that  you can book on very short notice. You decide the date and we'll run the pelagic - Value $175 to $1000  depending on the number of people taking part in the end.
• One free space on a Lima pelagic/whalewatching trip any day of the year,  booked with minimum 9 months in advance. Value $175 to $1000  depending on the number of people taking part in the end.
• Perpetually free 1 day pelagic/whalewatching on standby basis - this also applies if we arrange pelagic away from Lima.  Value $175 each time.
• Perpetually 10% discount on all our tours - discounting the airfares and train tickets.  It will not only apply on Peru tours, but also on our international tours. On a two week tour this discount amounts to between $200-300
  We mostly do birdwatching tours, but we are also arranging standard nature tours and cultural tours.  Our activity is expanding also outside of Peru.
• Perpetually free Lima day trips as long as there are 2 other paying clients.  Value around $150 per trip.

Read more about the background of this offer on this previous blogpost. It also relates to our environmental, conservation  and social commitment. The Special offer is valid until July 15. Extended to December 31, 2011.
Write me to sign up for the program or to ask questions how this can benefit you.

Our Whale-watching commitment

In the tropics in countries where regulations don't exist, there are few operators of whalewatching who apply ethical standards to their operations. We are the difference to the rule.

• We don't harrass the animals. Always keep a distance and let the cetaceans come to us if they like.
• We don't do "swim with the sealions" or "swim with the dolphins" set-ups. Such practices are not allowed in for example the US. Why should we offer it here? We don't care if the competitor does it and if there is no particular legislation against it. Furthermore, we find it utterly pointless to let our passengers bob around in lifejackets in the freezing Humboldt current.
• we avoid to break up fish schools where dolphins feed.
• we don't seek out to get the dolphins bow-riding. If they come to us - fine - then we slow down to avoid accidents.
• If the sea allows it, we will shut the engines when near the cetaceans
• We collect observations and will share them with researchers from IMARPE (The Peruvian Sea Institute) and CEPEC (Centro Peruano de Estudios Cetológicos - Peruvian NGO directed by Koen Van Waerebeck, international specialist on Cetaceans often contracted by IWC). We will also publish the species lists and numbers of all outings.

Literature used for this article.

One can't own too many books about Cetaceans. Here are some (affiliate) links to Amazon for the books that I have used to collect information for this article.

• Whales and Dolphins of the North American Pacific: Including Seals and Other Marine Mammals Graeme Cresswell, Dylan Thomas and Todd Pusser
• Whales, Dolphins, and Other Marine Mammals of the World (Princeton Field Guides) Hadoram Shirihai
• The Complete Guide to Antarctic Wildlife: Birds and Marine Mammals of the Antarctic Continent and the Southern Ocean (Second Edition) Hadoram Shirihai
• Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises Mark Carwardine
• National Audubon Society Guide to Marine Mammals of the World (National Audubon Society Field Guide)

Addionally, an excellent book by Julio Reyes to learn about Peruvian Cetaceans in Spanish can be found for free pdf download here.

Photos used in this article with permission or Creative Commons license:  Humpback whale breaching - Image ID: sanc0605, NOAA's Sanctuaries Collection, Dusky Dolphin (Lima, Peru) - Gunnar Engblom, Dusky Dolphin (Peru) - Ignacio Garcia-Godos, Bottle-nosed Dolphin (W Australia) -  Marj Kibby, Short-beaked Common Dolphin (North Peru) - Ignacio Garcia-Godos, Long--beaked Common Dolphin (Lima, Peru) - Gunnar Engblom,Burmeister's purpoise - whales.org, Probable Bryde's Whale (Lima, Peru) - Gunnar Engblom, Bryde's Whale (Lima, Peru) - Ignacio Garcia-Godos, possible Sei Whale - Gunnar Engblom, Blue Whale (California, US) - Dave Slater, BLue Whale (pygmy?) - Ignacio Garcia-Godos, Mystery Pygmy Blue Whale from Peru (Lima) - Mike Danzenbaker, Pygmy Fin Whale (possibly undescribed taxa, Lima, Peru) x 2- Gunnar Engblom,  Humpbacck Whale x 2 (Lima, Peru) - Gunnar Engblom, Sperm Whale x2 (Lima, Peru) - Alejandro Tabini, Killer Whale (BC, Canada) - Miles Ritter, Peruvian Beaked whale illustration from Whales, Dolphin's and Porpoises By Mark Carwardine.

For once I am making an exception and blog about a future trip. This particular one includes birding and culture in a great fashion. Also read through the article you shall see that I am giving a fantastic last minute offer. And there are very cheap flights from Miami now. The itinerary is request for the middle of March, combining Northern and Southern Peru and features a pelagic, Chaparri, Machu Picchu and optionally the Amazonian rainforest. What more could you ask for? It is a "best of Peru tour". The perfect trip to bring your non birding spouse as it gives beautiful scenery as well as many cultural attractions. The trip visits Tumbes, Piura and Chiclayo in the North. Cusco, Machu Pichu and Los Amigos biological Station in the South. Lima acts as a hub with a trip to see condors in Santa Eulalia canyon.

Highlight birding localities of the trip

• Condor watching in Lima going up the impressive Santa Eulalia Canyon for an overnight stay. Also here Great Inca-Finch and Black-necked Flicker.
• Birdwatching in Tumbes forest. Semi-dry Spanish moss clad deciduous forest with giant balsa trees with bright green bark and the many species of birds that are endemic for this region.
• A pelagic tour from the lovely beach resort Punta Sal on which we apart from birds like Galapagos Petrel and Waved Albatross find Humpback Whale and Bottle-nosed and spinner Dolphins.
• Later we visit Chaparri with the captive breeding program of re-introduced White-winged Guan and Spectacled Bear - as well as spectacular birds such as White-tailed Jay and Black-faced Ibis. Also it is a great place to watch Hummingbirds bathing in a nearby pond.
• Bosque Pomac that holds the rare Peruvian Plantcutter and Rufous Flycatcher among the target bird species
• Huacarpay lake in Cusco with many water birds as well as endemic species nearby,  such as Bearded Mountaineer, Rusty-fronted Canastero and Streak-fronted Thornbird
• Abra Malaga road - cloud forest. With endemics like Marcapata Spinetail, Scaled Metaltail, Red-and-White Antpitta, Cusco Brush-Finch, Parodi's Hemispingus and spectacular birds such as Sword-billed Hummingbird, Golden-collared Tanager, Grass-Green Tanager, Scarlet-bellied Mountain-Tanager.
• Abra Malaga road - Polylepis forest. With rare species such as Royal Cinclodes, Ash-breasted Tit-Tyrant, Rust-crowned Tit-Spinetail, Tawny Tit-SPinetail, Puna Tapaculo, Red-rumped Bush-Tyrant, etc.
• Abra Malaga road - dry slope. With endemics such as Creamy-crested Spinetail and White-tufted Sunbeam.
• The cloud forest around Machu Picchu with Cock of the Rock, Torrent Duck, Highland Motmot, White-eared Solitaire, Masked Fruiteater, Inca Wren and Ocellated Piculet.
• Optional full week at Amigos Research station gives good lodging in the rainforest and over 200 birds and 10 species of monkeys - usually....and maybe more. Electric light and WIFI internet access. Bring your computer to blog from here!

Cultural Highlights.

Did we just loose your spouse??? Call her/him back.

Here are the many cultural highlight and other attractions to the non birder.

• Guided tour in Lima with visit the excellent Archeology museum. The Incas are only the tip of the iceberg.
• Lima is the gourmet capital of South America. We shall enjoy some of the fine cuisine while here.
• Relaxed stay on the beach of Punta Sal.  You may work on the tan if you don't like boats. Exquisite food.
• Visit to the Lord of Sipan Museum in Lambayeque.
• Visit to the pyramids of Tucume and the Tucume museum.
• Charming Chaparri  Eco Lodge
• The Inca ruins of Sacsayhuaman
• The Inca ruins of Pisac
• The Inca ruins of Ollantaytambo
• The Inca ruins of Machu Picchu
• Cusco town - is one main cultural attraction.

Scenery Highlights

Spectacular scenery and wholesome nature experiences

• Santa Eulalia Cañon
• Tumbes forest
• Pacific ocean at Punta Sal
• Chaparri Communal reserve
• Machu Picchu
• Sacred valley
• Abra Malaga
• The Amazon rainforest at Amigos research station close to Puerto Maldonado.

Day to day Peru program 18 days.

In the below program, flights, hotels, transport, food, excursions, guiding and entrance fees are included in the price. Airport taxes, drinks and tips are not included.

Price: Last minute offer for couples. 3000$ per person.

March 15. AM. City tour with Archeological museum. PM. Start of Condor program

March 16. Condor program in Santa Eulalia Canyon. Return to Lima and flight to Tumbes.

March 17. Tumbes program. Visit Tumbes forest AM. In afternoon transfer to Punta Sal.

March 18. Punta Sal Pelagic. PM transfer to Piura and birding Mangroves of Vice.

March 19. Visiting the Royal Tomb Museum of Lord of Sipan in Lambayeque.  PM arrive to Chaparri.

March 20. Chaparri AM. Rest of morning at Bosque Pomac for Peruvian Plantcutter. PM at Tucume. Evening flight to Lima.

March 21. Start of Machu Picchu cultural birding program (program C) Early flight to Cusco. City tour. Sacsayhuaman, Cathedral, Coricancha in this order. Lunch. Departure to Pisac. Visit Huacarpay on the way. Overnight in Pisac. Charming town and charming small hotel.

March 22. Early visit to Pisac ruins. Birding walking down to Pisac town. Visit the Pisac market. Continue to Ollantaytambo. Visit the archeological site of Ollantaytambo in the PM. Night in Ollantaytambo at Hostal Muñay Tika.

March 23 Full day to Abra Malaga. We shall take evening train to Aguas Calientes. Night in Hostal Pachacutek.

March 24. Full day at the Machu Picchu ruins and birding in the cloude forest nearby.

March 25. Birding cloud forest around Aguas Calientes. In afternoon train and bus to Cusco. Hostal Emperador Plaza.

March 26. Morning in Cusco. Flight to Maldonado at 11.00 Birding near Puerto Maldonado. Hotel in PM.

March 27-April 1. Birds and monkeys at Amigos Research Center. Click on the link for more info.

Photos: License by Common Creative. Machu Picchu: Brian Snelson

Done a few more trips to search for Cetaceans and seabirds the last two months.

On January 19 a full day at sea gave many fantastic observations of Dolphins and one whale.

This may be a Sei whale that has lost its dorsal fin.

Dusky Dolphins come close to the boat.

Common Dolphins were also often seen on this full day trip.

On February 18 we had great observations of a Bryde’s/Sei Whale.

During our long pelagic we are beginning to see patterns. It is quite clear that Humpbacks migrate along the coast Peru and passing Lima in October-November and February-March.

Humpback Whale breaching sequence during migration south. Lima, Nov 10,
2006. Photo: Gunnar Engblom

However, details about the ocurance of other whales in other seasons are still very little known. It is hoped, with these five hours trips on a regular basis, on which we will record position, numbers, species and activities of all cetaceans, that we will learn more about the movements of cetaceans off the coast of Callao.
During the month of January, we have seen many other cetaceans in the past including Sei, Fin and Bryde's Whale - and the usual three species of dolphins (Common, Bottle-nosed and Dusky Dolphins). During January we be operating 5 hours whale and dolphin watching trips on January 6 and 14. On January 19 there will be a full day pelagic for birdwatchers, but the chance of seeing whales and dolphins on this trip is also a very good since we cover much more ground.

On Nov 30, 2006 we made our last trip.
Once again, we went out to sea trying to spot cetaceans. It was a fine day with good views. The cloud cover soon broke up and we saw the sun. Passing the guano Palomino island of Island we continue straigth out into the deep ocean.

In a distance we see a huge flock of birds. We decide to approach. There are Peruvian Boobies making kamikaze dives from some 30 meters up, lots of Inca Terns and Sooty Shearwaters, as well as a couple of Pelicans and many Gray Gulls.

And now to the left! What is that?
DOLPHINS!!! Lots of them!

All of a sudden there were hundreds of Dusky Dolphins around us.

This close-up of Dusky Dolphin shows the caracteristic absence of bottle-shape beak, the contrasting body pattern, and the falcate dorsal fin that is slightly paler towards the trailing edge.

But the trip was not over yet. We would encounter three such large concentrations of fish, dolphins and seabirds. There were at least 400 dolphins in total through the day.

Many very interesting birds were also seen.

Here is the localized White-vented Storm-Petrel. Other Storm-Petrels seen during the trip were Wedge-rumped and Wilson's Storm-Petrels.

There were many Pomerine Jaegers about. They are the true pirates of the sea, chasing after other birds, bothering them in all ways possible like grabbing their feathers, untill the victim has to give up that recently caught anchoveta.

One of the most exciting birds according to the birdwatchers onboard was the Swallow-Tailed Gull. In one flock there were 29 individals and one Sabine's Gull.

Everyone on board were amazed by the large numbers of Waved Albatross that we were seeing. Well over 30 individuals through-out the day. The Waved Albatross basically only breeds on one island in the Galapagos archipelago. There is a small insignificant numbers on La Plata island off the Ecuadorian coast.

But all individuals will pass some time in their life in Peruvian waters either as young birds or in between breeding attempts. Recently, it has been shown that there are less breeding pairs at Española than some 10 years ago. Apparantly adult mortality away from the colony is very high, so that the species should warrent critical threatened status. It seems that bycatch and intentional killing in Northern Peru is the big problem. See the BirdLife Internationals ongoing discussion about this species.

This individual was ringed. Click on the picture to see! Also this other picture also shows the same bird.

Back at Isla Palomino we encountered the huge sealion colony. In spite of being in the middle of the day there were surely more than 1000 individuals. In the late afternoon one can see between 5000-8000 sealions here.

On this picture the male is the one with the thick neck. The youngs will be born very shortly and there will be mating taking place almost immediately. The males need to be in a strategic place.

At the islands we encounter the yacht Melusine, which we usually use for our long full day pelagics. We shall run one of these long pelagic trips on January 19. with the Melusine.

Near Palomino island one usually find the most beautiful Cormorant in the world. Here the Red-legged Cormorant is collecting nesting material. This shot was taken a month ago, but we saw many of these cormorants on the trip.

Our circuit has almost come to an end, but before returning to shore we shall check out the penguins.

It is calculated that some 400 Penguins live on San Lorenzo islands. We saw around 100.

Back in the port around 1 PM we found Terns. Here are Elegant Tern and Sandwich Tern.

Finally, the most beautiful of all - Inca Tern.

Gunnar Engblom
Kolibri Expeditions
Birding Peru with Kolibri Expeditions
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