Atlantic Odyssey 2018 - Part 7 To the Cape Verde Islands

Bulwer's Petrel - Bulweria bulwerii

On and around Ascension Island we were in warm, tropical waters and there were far fewer seabirds to be seen. 

Our fellow voyagers, not distracted by birds

As we approached the equator, there were still cetaceans in good numbers, and we had encounters with pods of Short-finned Pilot Whales.  All my SFPW shots look pretty same-ish, so here are three of them.

Short-finned Pilot Whale - Globicephala macrorynchus

Short-finned Pilot Whale - Globicephala macrorynchus

Short-finned Pilot Whale - Globicephala macrorynchus

Risso’s Dolphin’s were seen well, and their scratched, metallic appearance in clear blue water was memorable.

Risso's Dolphin - Grampus griseus

Risso's Dolphin - Grampus griseus

The sight of a Taiwanese Trawler in mid-Atlantic was a vivid reminder of the globalisation of man’s exploitation of the seas.

Not "flying the flag" ?

"Breaching" Sperm Whale - Physeter macrocephalus

Striped Dolphins - Stenella coeruleoalba

There were still a few seabirds to draw our attention, though.

Leach's Storm-petrel - Hydrobates leucorhoa

Arctic Tern - Sterna paradisaea

Band-rumped Storm-Petrel - Hydrobates castro

Red-footed Booby - Sula sula

Not a seabird, obviously

On April 27th, only a couple of days from the end of our “Odyssey” we had a spectacular hour-long encounter with about 400 Spinner Dolphins. I found the 500mm too long to capture these well (a lousy workman blames his tools) but Jemi did a lot better with the 100-400mm zoom. These shots are hers.

Spinner Dolphin - Stenella longirostris

Spinner Dolphin - Stenella longirostris

Spinner Dolphin - Stenella longirostris

Spinner Dolphin - Stenella longirostris

Spinner Dolphin - Stenella longirostris

Bulwer's Petrels were seen in single-figure numbers daily, it seemed as though they only came close to the boat at dawn and dusk.  We surprised a few sitting on the water, which then often gave close but brief views.

Bulwer's Petrel - Bulweria bulwerii

We had been seeing “Cory’s-type Shearwater” shearwaters distantly for several days, so it was nice to see them close and firmly-identified at last.

Cory's Shearwater - Calonectris diomedea borealis

Closely-related Cape Verde Shearwaters revealed themselves in due course, and we knew we were close to our destination.

Cape Verde Shearwater - Calonectris edwardsii

Cape Verde Shearwater - Calonectris edwardsii

Eventually we reached the port of Praia, on the island of Santiago, Cape Verde.

Tug boat

Fishing

Cape Verde Swift - Apus alexandri

Port of Praia, Santiago, Cape Verde

Thirty-four days, 12,575 km sailed and memories to last a lifetime. 

Just a line seems not enough to thank Sebastian Arrebola (Expedition Leader) and the Oceanwide Expedition Team for their expertise and good humour throughout the voyage. 

The good companionship of our fellow passengers helped make the trip more enjoyable, too.

"The essential gear"

The end of the trip, and I can rest the hat, bins and camera on the ships's deck here before packing them away at last.