Today was my first day of the whale-watching season guiding for Yorkshire Coast Nature. Trips have been running for several weeks and have been a great success, so I was looking forward to joining in the fun. We had a cracking morning, with at least 23 Minke Whales, mostly between three and five miles out, feeding on spawning Herring. Two large feeding frenzies were discovered with the sea boiling with Grey Seals and Minke Whales, with hundreds of Gannets, Herring Gulls and Fulmars all joining in. There were lots of Sooty Shearwaters around today, with at least 30 recorded (we normally only see a couple at this time of year) plus a massive highlight in the form of a stonking Great Shearwater, which glided in with a squad of Sooties and landed on the water right next to the boat. It then showed brilliantly on the water and cruising around for fifteen minutes. Only a couple of Manxies were seen today, but we added a smart Caspian Gull, half a dozen Great and Arctic Skuas, lots of terns and a few waders. A wonderful way to kick off the season!
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