Explore More Issue 18

Above: The loggerhead

Above: The loggerhead turtle lives in oceans all around the world below the surface, but occasionally some of it surfaces. Whales, dolphins, sharks, seabirds, turtles or large fish might be passing through on migration or searching over vast areas for food, so it’s always worth keeping your eyes open. So where are the best places to see whales and dolphins? And which cruise should you book? The answers depends on which species you would most like to see and what time of the year you wish to travel. In summer and early autumn, North Atlantic itineraries are good for spotting minke, humpback, sei, fin and even blue whales, as well as many dolphin species. Seabirds such as, gannets, fulmars, kittiwakes and puffins are also favourites in this part of the world. Even in UK waters, the Sea Watch Foundation (seawatchfoundation.org.uk) has records of 29 species of whales, dolphins and porpoises! Striped and common dolphins inhabit warmer waters such as the Bay of Biscay, which usually features on voyages heading from Northern Europe to the Mediterranean, Azores and Canaries, all of which provide great opportunities to see many of the above species too. The Azores is also good for sperm whales and easier to get to than the famous whale hub of Kaikoura, a town on New Zealand’s South Island. Meanwhile, the eastern seaboard of the US and Canada, from Massachusetts northwards, draws humpback, sei, fin and occassionally blue whales, as well as the critically endangered northern right whale. Hotspots include Stellwagen Bank off Boston, the Bay of Fundy and St. Lawrence Seaway, which has the world’s only non-Arctic population of beluga whales. In the winter months, the Caribbean and Central American waters provide feeding grounds for migrating humpback whales, but year-round, Atlantic and pantropical spotted dolphins, bottlenose dolphins, pilot whales and sperm whales can be seen. Seabirds such as brown and masked boobies are amazing sights here too, often chasing the abundant flying fish. Around South America, Peninsular Valdez in If it’s orca you want to see, the Inside Passage between the mainland and Vancouver Island is the best place in the world to go Argentina is renowned for sightings of orca taking seals from the beaches in March and April, and October and November, and is also home to other species including southern right whales from June to December. The Beagle Channel, Strait of Magellan and Chilean Fjords are full of whales, including minke, humpback, sei, fin and blue whales, as well as Chilean, Commerson’s, Peale’s and dusky dolphins. From here up to Peru and Ecuador, the cold Humboldt Current ensures marine life is rife, with various species of albatross and giant petrels among the many seabird encounters. Hawaii is home to breeding humpbacks in the winter, but in the summer and autumn they head to Alaska to feed. Grey whales join them here after migrating along the western seaboard of the USA and Canada from the lagoons and coastal waters of Baja California where they breed. If it’s orca you want to see, the Inside Passage between Vancouver Island and the mainland is undoubtedly the best place to go, although Iceland, Norway, Alaska and the Antarctic are other popular places to spot the species. Further afield, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa are brilliant for marine life encounters, especially humpback and southern right whales in the southern summer and early autumn, and various dolphin species year round. New Zealand is famous for the sperm whales of Kaikoura and is the the only place to see Hector’s and critically endangered Maui’s dolphins. Similarly, only in Namibia and northern South Africa can the Haviside’s dolphin be seen. If you’d like to join Robin, he’ll be on board Viking Sun for the World Cruises from January 2020 and 2021 (LA to London); Viking Jupiter for British Isles Explorer (26 July and 9 August 2020) and Viking Homelands (23 August 2020); Viking Sun for Cities of Antiquities and the Holy Land (7 Nov 2020) and Western Mediterranean Explorer (21 Nov 2020). thewhaleanddolphinman.co.uk 34 VIKINGCRUISES.CO.UK | WINTER 2019 032-035_EM18_Wildlife.indd 34 05/11/2019 09:42

TRAVEL Clockwise from above: The Viking fleet has many spaces for wildlife watching; one of 40 known flying fish species; a humpback whale breaches in the Beagle Channel; a wandering albatross spotted in New Zealand PHOTOS: © ROBIN PETCH WINTER 2019 | VIKINGCRUISES.CO.UK 35 032-035_EM18_Wildlife.indd 35 05/11/2019 09:42