Scilly Pelagic - Dolphins galore!!

Pelagics are not just about the birds with a variety of other creatures on offer! Common Dolphins are virtually always seen, sometimes distant, sometimes close... Today was one of those special days when an estimated 150 were showing really well and often close to the boat...

Someone was going to get very excited (although you would never guess it)

Never easy to capture them out of the water, you always need to guess where that leap may happen a second before it does!

The further away, the easier it becomes to keep them in the frame...

And some of the leaps can produce 2 or 3 images clear within a burst!

But a single Dolpin image doesn't tell the whole story...

Who photo-bombed who? With a glut of Great Shearwaters around too, I found two lucky moments when both Dolphins and Greats were in the frame!

Every picture tells a story - what a magic day!

Quite a lot of squealing going on from the rail...

And if you haven't witnessed Common Dolphins in action, here's a snippet of the action (which will go full frame)...

One more bird to feature on the run in, not a seabird but a wader...

Scilly Pelagic no 9 - classic pelagic magic!

The wind had dropped from the previous evening, a gentle 15 mph westerly beckoned with a 2 metre swell and the weather was set fair! Hardly t-shirt weather but blue skies beckoned early on! Nearly 'all change'  on the crew scene, fitting nicely into the pano-phone shot!

And all eyes focused on the horizon! Eagle eyed Bob and Bella ready to sniff out those Dolphins?

I've posted far too many Cory's Shearwater images but they were once again showing well with 14 seen plus 2 Great Shearwaters...

Always pleasing to see the tracking set to ignore temporary obstructions here!

A backlit Sooty Shearwater passing close by...

 The ever present European Storm Petrels, seen on every trip out and often overlooked as they not exactly easy catch and the light was just about good enough to capture them!

But once again, the prize and 9th consecutive BIG 3 result - Wilson's Petrel (2 seen today) Pretty obliging too!

Spoiling us with classic upperwing opportunities!

Even managed to catch a couple of Common Dolphins!

A new bird for the trip (on the way back in) was this juv/1w Mediterranean Gull...

Kept us amused for 5 mins or so...

An early start for what is often 'Special Sunday' but is destined to be 'Very Wet Sunday' whatever happens!

Scilly day 8 - pelagic Dolphins leaping!!

A couple of close encounters with Common Dolphins gave one excellent chance for 'flight' shots as two steamed in close to the boat.....

Here's the first......

A flatter trajectory from the second.....

Never mind the seabirds, I have two daughters who will appreciate these!!