2006 saw the beginning of the Manx Whale + Dolphin Watch and in June its website went live, recording the local sightings of over 1700 individual whales, dolphins and porpoises.

Clearly most animals were sighted throughout the summer months. However the bar chart above does not tell the whole story.

Having only begun the on-line reporting scheme in June 2006, there is significant under-reporting in the first five months, which are comparable to the reporting activity for previous years.

In 2005, around 10 people reported their sightings, in 2006, over 100 logged on to report their observations.

The bar chart also fails to properly compare the limitations imposed on sightings by poor visibility or adverse weather. In 2006, August was simply blown away. On the 2nd, strong winds began to blow and continued in undiminished fury until the 22nd, whereupon after a short pause for breath and the winds began anew.

Consequently, our peak Minke whale sighting period of August and early September off the west coast was seriously and adversely impacted by strong winds and high seas – not good for observing cetaceans.

However the season was a huge success for the number of animals sighted and reported and for raising the awareness of the richness of whales and dolphins in the waters around Mann. This success is entirely due to the very large number of people from all around the Island, who logged-on to record and share their wonderful sightings – thank you.

Throughout 2006, all manner of species were positively identified, the most common being the Harbour Porpoise which again accounts for over half the animals reported. Some were less easily recognized giving just a tantalizing glimpse of giants below the surface.

Most of the sightings were made from the shore, more usually from some high vantage point allowing whales, fins and the moving sea to be readily distinguished. However, even low lying beaches, as at the Ayres Visitor Centre, yielded a wonderful array of sightings for the careful and patient observer.

So what did 2006 show us? We had lots of Harbour porpoises, probably our only resident cetacean, but beyond that, a vast array of different and more ‘exotic’ species.

Common dolphins came to our waters in good numbers, over 300 were recorded. These dolphins gather in huge groups in the Celtic Sea in early summer, where super-pods of up to 3000 animals have been recorded. These dolphins visit us in smaller pods of 20 or so, and can be seen throughout the summer, particularly in the south and west of the Island. Easily confused with the similarly sized Harbour porpoise, the Common dolphin is much more exuberant in its behaviour and tends to go round in larger groups, often to be seen leaping clear of the water – something Harbour porpoises just don’t normally do.

Then there were the Risso’s dolphins; massive, dynamic animals up to around 12 feet long. We had sightings from all around the Island, but the most reliable vantage point seems to be Langness in early summer. Those wonderful May evenings, say 6 to 8 o’clock, when the sea looks like silk, Risso’s dolphins were a regular sight. Also the deep water close to shore from Douglas Head to Little Ness proved to be another regular haunt, providing dog walkers and joggers with regular sightings from Marine Drive.

The Risso’s dolphins remained around the Island most of the year, in pods up to about 12 animals, all grey and scarred as adults, while the juveniles retain the black colouring of their birth. Sometimes just a few, sometimes many, but always exciting; often breaching and other times tail slapping but constantly active, as they forage for squid and cuttlefish close to the shore line.

We had a few Bottlenose dolphins, but less than usual. In the recent past we have had good numbers sighted throughout the winter and early spring. Last year the weather was not favourable, with high winds and big seas throughout that whole period, so winter sightings were very few.

It is suspected that the Bottlenoses we see around Mann are the same dolphins that form the Cardigan Bay pod, resident off the Welsh coast through the summer months. Until we get some good dorsal fin ID photos of our Bottlenose visitors, we will never be sure from where they come – so that must be another challenge for the coming seasons, good ID photography.

Orcas too were again reported in 2006 after an unusual absence from the 2005 list. With Atlantic Grey seals in abundance around the Calf, there are plenty of feeding opportunities to draw these huge animals, the biggest of the true dolphins and the top predator in the Northern European waters.

This last season we had sightings of two small pods of Orcas, one of 4, the other of 5 animals as well as a number of reports of individual Orcas breaching, even in Douglas Bay. A fabulous cetacean, all black and white, massive and dynamic, making your heart beat faster as you watch them surge across the water often within yards of the shore.

Then we had our summer spectacular, the Minke whales; sometimes feeding at the surface just a couple of hundred metres off the coast, or even right up to the rocks. Every year they come to the west coast to feed on the shoaling fish that are drawn to these waters to fatten themselves on the rich plankton soup that drives our entire marine system. Early morning and early evening are best, say 6 to 9.

Off the west coast, watching from Niarbyl, in August and early September, when the sea is smooth and shining, you will see the Minkes feeding, sometimes a dozen or more throughout the whole afternoon.

But the most reliable time to see Minkes is early morning and early evening. The herring are said to ‘rise’ about 7 each night, to begin their nocturnal plankton feast and that’s when the sea can erupt with huge rorquals. But it’s not just the marvellous Minkes that can be seen; sometimes, not far from shore a giant surges to the surface with a huge blow of water, 20 feet into the air.

With a flat calm sea, it’s as if Manannan mac Lir himself were striding across the water, huge footprints appear, as if pressed upon the surface. These are the mighty imprints left by the enormous Fin whale as it surfaces to breathe. At well over 20 metres long and reaching up to 70 tonnes and sometimes even more, this is the second largest animal ever to have inhabited the planet; and here they were, as every year recently, just 1200 metres off the coast of Mann.

As the season progressed into Autumn, the herring finally went to spawn off the east coast and from mid September onwards, Minkes were regularly spotted anywhere from Port Soderick to Maughold. For a time, one appeared to take temporary shelter in Douglas harbour, while others moved around the east coast, making regular appearances, and occasionally breaching, in and around Laxey Bay.

This excellent shot of one of the daily visitors to Laxey Bay was taken by Ben Hill of Douglas, as the whale fed, close to the shore.

Last year there were other unusual sightings; a small pod of White-beaked dolphins, normally a species seen further north in the Hebrides, then maybe a Northern Bottlenose whale and possibly a pair of Humpbacks seen along the west coast last July.

In all, over 80% of all sightings were made from the shore or close to it, begging the question: ‘If we are recording this many cetaceans at the very boundary of their habitat, just off the shoreline, just how many are out there in the sea around us?’

So that must be the challenge for 2007, to try to find out just how many cetaceans are in and around the waters of Mann.

We are particularly grateful to the Department of Tourism and Leisure (DTL) as well as to the Wildlife and Conservation Division of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) for their generous financial support for the planned off-shore survey work, which together with some additional private funding means that we have the resources to survey Manx waters to determine what species are present as well as when, where and how many.

Data about the presence of cetaceans in Manx waters are particularly important in the development of any marine tourism initiatives, such as the potential for development of increased whale and shark watching.

These scientific surveys will provide the basic data necessary for understanding the measures required to protect and conserve these endangered species while allow enjoyment of them by tourists and residents alike. Clearly any tourism development must be done in such a way that the animals concerned are undisturbed and properly protected by suitable management actions in order to prevent the abuse or disturbance of these wonderful creatures.

In 2007, the Manx Whale + Dolphin Watch is going Off-shore, if you want to be part of the survey teams, please contact us through the website or on 01 624 844 353.