Today was the first day of the year that the weather allowed for us to head onto the blue horizon.

The day started beautifully as depicted in the photo taken of the sunrise today!

We were welcomed by a small pod of Common Dolphins (Delphinus delphis) most of them adults. They were curious towards us giving us the opportunity to see every difference between individuals and their fins.

Common dolphin surfacing

In the same area we found another pod of Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), this time the pod was not very interested in us, just travelling into other parts of the island. We were still delighted to observe this famous species. One of our guests asked how people choose the common names for the animals?  We all had to laugh, since our guest fill us with moments of happiness while being delighted with the creatures that inhabit the Atlantic waters.

We continued our navigation and the water was so flat it gave us a feeling of navigating on a mirror of the unknown, while the sun slowly caressed our faces and the ocean breeze was giving us a sense of freedom.

Suddenly our guest pointed to the water, only to sight a massive fin coming in and out. This fin made it clear that it was a Risso’s Dolphin (Grampus griseus), one of the resident species of the Azores, that even though they behold a resident status they still mesmerize the eyes of everyone while surfacing and making it clear how their scared body caries a story within every mark.

 

We are truly happy to have been out to the Ocean and can’t wait to see what new adventures this 2021 beholds and what secrets of the ocean we might be able to unfold along side all of you.

 

Anaïs Builly

About Anaïs Builly

Anais Builly is Marine Biologist and Master of Biology, Ecology and Ecosystems, and of Bioproducts & Bioproduction of Marine Ecosystems, studied in France and South Africa. She is also Marine Wildlife Guide & Community Manager at TERRA AZUL. She is passionate about conservation of marine mammals, and loves being out in the ocean everyday.