It was a truely epic experience for our last Kyle of Localsh survey of the year, with seven species of marine mammals encountered including: common dolphins, Risso’s dolphins, white-beaked dolphins, minke whales, harbour porpoise, grey and common seals.
We experienced every type of weather that the west coast has to offer on our first survey departing from Kyle of Lochalsh. Seven species of marine megafauna were encountered: basking sharks, common dolphins, Risso’s dolphins, minke whales, harbour porpoise, grey and common seals
Silurian and her crew soak up some iconic Scottish scenery winding their way through spectacular sea lochs in between the cloud-capped mountains, well known castles and sail through the Corryvreckan, enjoying some wonderful porpoise sightings and frolicking common dolphins along the way.
Our first Teen Expedition of 2019, was totally unexpected, completely extraordinary and a huge amount of fun! Thanks to our six young, enthusiastic citizen scientists and some very settled weather, we sailed an impressive 232 nautical miles over five days, recording a whopping 123 sightings of 455 marine animals.
A variety weather conditions kept us on our toes for the latest research expedition. Six species of marine mammal were encountered: common dolphin, minke whale, harbour porpoise, grey and common seal and on our last morning a pod of 15 bottlenose dolphin!
The seventh expedition of the summer season concentrated on the northern and western reaches of our survey area, with ten species of marine mega-fauna encountered, including: basking shark, bottlenose dolphin, common dolphin, Risso’s dolphin, white-beaked dolphin, minke whales, harbour porpoise, grey and common seals.
Our latest research expedition concentrated on surveying the wild and remote northern reaches of our survey area, and saw Silurian sail up to Cape Wrath, the most north-westerly point of the UK mainland. It was a great trip with an unforgettable morning with basking sharks and plenty of other wildlife along the way too, and the evenings were spent enjoying spectacular sunsets and exploring uninhabited islands.
The fourth survey of the summer season concentrated on the southern reaches of our survey area, with eight species of marine megafauna encountered, inlcuding: basking sharks, bottlenose dolphins, common dolphins, Risso’s dolphins, minke whales, harbour porpoise, grey and common seals.
The third survey of the season explored the waters of the southern Outer Hebridean Islands, bringing the first basking shark sightings of the year on board Silurian! We also encountered hundreds of common dolphins, 10 minke whales, as well as harbour porpoise, common and grey seals.
We started the summer survey season in style on Silurian with our first minke whales of the year during the first standard survey expedition of 2019, and what spectacular sightings they were! We also saw bottlenose and common dolphins, harbour porpoise, grey seals and common seals.
Thanks to the generous backing of our funders and supporters, our research vessel Silurian has undergone a transformation! She travels thousands of miles every year to monitor Hebridean marine life and we are delighted that we have been able to give her the TLC she deserves!
Our last winter survey departed last week with a special volunteer on board. Andy Tait is one of our longest running and dedicated volunteers and has been working with the trust for 25 years! During the survey we saw harbour porpoise, grey and common seals and even a common dolphin!
Our last winter survey departed last week with a special volunteer on board. Andy Tait is one of our longest running and dedicated volunteers and has been working with the trust for 25 years! During the survey we saw harbour porpoise, grey and common seals and even a common dolphin!
An all-female crew have delivered a dedicated monitoring survey on Silurian for the first time! With the help of five volunteers, they scanned the waters around Mull during our second winter survey.
Our first ever survey in January marked the launch of our new multiyear programme of dedicated monitoring surveys during the winter months, providing critical year-round data for the first time in our history.
As part of the Coigach and Assynt Living Landscape Partnership Scheme’s Marine Project, five local teens joined HWDT on board Silurian to see what living at sea and researching whales and dolphins is all about. Find out from their perspective how they got on…
The last survey of 2018 - our third and final Teen Research Expedition, covering waters around Wester Ross and up to Lochinver. This trip really proves that volunteering on board Silurian, is about much more than spotting a few dolphins!
During the survey we had some amazing sightings of several species of cetacean, encountering white-beaked dolphins, common dolphins, minke whales and harbour porpoise. We also had some incredible skies, including an amazing display of the northern lights, accompanied by shooting stars.
During the survey we encountered seven species of marine mammals, as well as several basking sharks. When crossing the sea of the Hebrideas we even sighted all seven species in ONE DAY, including over 200 common dolphins, a breaching white-beaked dolphin and some juvenile bottlenose dolphins!
During the survey we covered the Sound of Sleat and surveyed around the Small Isles. In total we recorded six different species of marine megafauna, including an unexpected basking shark, some stealthy minke whales and over a hundred common dolphins.
