Los Islotes and Isla Espiritu Santo
We awoke cruising around the little island of Los Islotes. We spent the morning snorkeling and exploring around an island that is home to a colony of California sea lions. Many of us enjoyed the chance to swim with these elegant swimmers and we had an up-close and personal look of our furry friends. Sea lions were not the only attraction on the morning; many seabirds use Los Islotes as nesting grounds. Blue-footed and brown boobies, magnificent frigate birds, and Brants cormorants were birds that were easily spotted. After two rounds of snorkeling and Zodiac cruises, it was time to continue on.
With the sights of the Orcas of yesterday, no one was expecting the treat we received next. A large pod of Orcas were spotted in the distance. As we continued to get a closer view of these animals, we were soon surrounded by a large group of perhaps a dozen. Not only were we interested in looking at the whales; it seemed they were equally interested in us. We watched as the whales made passes, next to, under, and around the Sea Lion multiple times. At times the whales appeared to be bow-riding, a behavior most commonly seen in dolphins. They were not done yet.
We enjoyed a special scene; these predators displayed their feeding behavior, allowing us to clearly understand their common name, killer whales. The whales disappeared, and what we saw next was a pod of bottlenose dolphins, beginning to run frantically across the water. As the dolphins were trying to escape, we watched as the larger killer whales hunted their prey. Circling around a dolphin, a series of lunges, and a breach were followed by a chase. As we were sitting and watching this spectacular display of the circle of life, it seemed the whales wanted to show us that they are great hunters. Like a proud cat, bringing home its catch, one of the female killer whales swam right up to the ship and surfaced numerous times, displaying her catch of a bottlenose dolphin in her mouth. What an amazing experience. This was a perfect end to this remarkable trip. As we all go our different ways, it will be hard to forget the experiences we shared in this beautiful place, Baja California.
We awoke cruising around the little island of Los Islotes. We spent the morning snorkeling and exploring around an island that is home to a colony of California sea lions. Many of us enjoyed the chance to swim with these elegant swimmers and we had an up-close and personal look of our furry friends. Sea lions were not the only attraction on the morning; many seabirds use Los Islotes as nesting grounds. Blue-footed and brown boobies, magnificent frigate birds, and Brants cormorants were birds that were easily spotted. After two rounds of snorkeling and Zodiac cruises, it was time to continue on.
With the sights of the Orcas of yesterday, no one was expecting the treat we received next. A large pod of Orcas were spotted in the distance. As we continued to get a closer view of these animals, we were soon surrounded by a large group of perhaps a dozen. Not only were we interested in looking at the whales; it seemed they were equally interested in us. We watched as the whales made passes, next to, under, and around the Sea Lion multiple times. At times the whales appeared to be bow-riding, a behavior most commonly seen in dolphins. They were not done yet.
We enjoyed a special scene; these predators displayed their feeding behavior, allowing us to clearly understand their common name, killer whales. The whales disappeared, and what we saw next was a pod of bottlenose dolphins, beginning to run frantically across the water. As the dolphins were trying to escape, we watched as the larger killer whales hunted their prey. Circling around a dolphin, a series of lunges, and a breach were followed by a chase. As we were sitting and watching this spectacular display of the circle of life, it seemed the whales wanted to show us that they are great hunters. Like a proud cat, bringing home its catch, one of the female killer whales swam right up to the ship and surfaced numerous times, displaying her catch of a bottlenose dolphin in her mouth. What an amazing experience. This was a perfect end to this remarkable trip. As we all go our different ways, it will be hard to forget the experiences we shared in this beautiful place, Baja California.
