Just a short note to alert whale watchers to some potentially excellent whale activity off the Waterford/Wexford coast at present.
An effort watch on 3rd Jan by IWDG members from Ram Head, Ardmore, Co. Waterford produced c100 common dolphins, harbour porpoises and up to 3 fin whales to the West towards the Knockadoon Head, Youghal area. But we’ve been informed that WLR (Waterford Local Radio) ran a piece on 2nd Jan about dolphins being reported off Ballyhack/Passage East area of Waterford harbour, and whales, which are most likely to have been fin whales also being present in the Hook Head area.
In support of this, several fin whales were reported to IWDG yesterday 4th Jan, just east of Hook Head, and the description of a very low and bushy type blow on some of these leaves open the possibility that there may have been humpback whales among them. This would be an interesting development given that no humpbacks have been reported this winter in their usual west Cork haunts.
Although early days yet, it does look like the whale activity has once again moved east from the West Cork hotspots towards the Waterford Harbour area. Although as effort watches are showing, this activity may also be observed with relative ease from other land based sites west towards Youghal.
Please keep us informed if you hear anymore of this whale activity in the East Cork, Waterford or Wexford areas, by reporting them online at www.iwdg.ie