Mara Mhor News

Basking Sharks

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 17:52:00 +0000

The last 2 weeks of August were not good cruising weeks weatherwise. Basking sharks however were sighted on several occasions during August, presenting themselves at very close quarters with nose, dorsal fin and tail in view not to mention the wide open mouths which could sometimes be seen just under the surface.

Seal Pups

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 04:40:00 +0000

The number of seal pups born on Sgeir Dhon this year has been 10 which is good news for this colony.

The pups are growing at an alarming rate and will soon be hard to distinguish from the young adolescents. Any time now the mothers will abandon them to fend for themselves, while they try to rebuild their own condition prior to the mating season.

June, a Great Month For Wildlife Watching

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 19:29:00 +0000

June ended on a high note on Mara Mhor with two very successful day cruises during which dolphins surrounded the boat just south of Oban.
Later, on one of the cruises, the sea eagle and her chick were seen.
The passengers were also treated to close encounters with the new born seal pups and were able to watch while a mother fed her pup.

Common Dolphins

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 19:14:00 +0000

On a cruise southwards via the Sound of Kerrera from Oban, we encountered a small pod of common dolphins, about 6 in number. These are perhaps the same ones that were in and around Oban Bay earlier in the week. They were feeding in the tidal stream near the mouth of Loch Feochan and circled the boat to play when they became aware of our presence. These dolphins have the characteristic pattern of yellowish-tan on their lower flanks, becoming pale grey behind the fin. They swam under the bow of the boat for quite some time, enabling all the passengers an excellent view of them.

Bottlenose Dolphins

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 16:46:00 +0000

On a Round Kerrera Cruise today we encountered a large pod of bottlenose dolphins. There must have been upwards of 20 in the pod including some young ones and some juveniles. They entertained us for 15 minutes jumping and surfing at the bow of the boat. When the boat was stopped to allow photographs to be taken they continued to surface and circle the vessel to the delight of our passengers.

Arrival of First Seal Pups

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 16:32:00 +0000

The first seal pups have been born on Sgeir Dhon between 5pm last night and 10am this morning. One mother and pup are very high up and exposed whilst the other is much nearer the low water line. This will make for a much easier entry into the water for the pup. There is a black backed gull hovering around and it is to be hoped that the mothers look after their pups well!

Last year's first pups were born on 24th June.

Common Dolphins

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 16:17:00 +0000

There was a small pod of common dolphins in Oban Bay in the early part of the week, an unusual sight so close to the shore. They were seen frequently over the course of 2 days enjoying bow-riding infront of the many boats coming in and out of the bay. They put on a good display breaching and wake jumping. The common dolphins are smaller than the bottlenose dolphins which are also found around our shores.

Pregnant Female Seals

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 10:38:00 +0000

The pregnant females are almost ready to give birth to their pups. The pups will be born on Sgeir Dhon in the next week or so. Hopefully they will not have too much harassment from the black back gulls which have been closing in on the colony lately. The number of pregnant females appears to be about the same as last year.

Dolphins

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 09:27:00 +0000

Due to strong wind we travelled south yesterday instead of our Tobermory and Beyond Cruise. We proceeded through the Easdale Sound and in the rough water of the standing waves, near the entrance to the Sound of Cuan, we were joined by 3 dolphins. They put on a spectacular show of wave jumping and bow surfing around the boat for some time and then enjoyed jumping our wake as we made our way through Cuan Sound.

There were no sightings near Corryvrecken.
Later on the same cruise we came across a sea eagle at the north end of the Island of Jura.

It was quite a day - enjoyed by all!

Porpoise Spotted

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 12:33:00 +0000

On a cruise in the Sound of Mull yesterday porpoise were spotted feeding in the tidal stream Duart Castle.
We also had good sightings of a sea eagle and a distant sighting of a golden eagle. A good day!

White-Billed Immature Great Northern Diver

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 12:17:00 +0000

On a cruise to the seal colony on 2nd April one of the passengers who is a professional photographer got an excellent shot of the white-billed immature great northern diver. He has since sent it to us with his permission to use the image on our website.

Sea Eagles viewed from Mara Mhor

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:36:00 +0000

We were lucky enough to take these photos of the sea
eagles.

March 2009 Sea Eagles

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 14:09:00 +0000

Sea Eagles photographed in the Sound of Mull 19/03/09
We were very lucky to encounter a pair of sea eagles in the Sound of Mull as we returned from a cruise to Tobermory last Thursday.
They put on an impressive display for us. This is indeed a great start to the season and hopfully a sign of many wonderful sightings to come.

Good Year For Pups

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 16:27:00 +0000

There were a healthy number of pups born on Sgeir Dhon this year - eleven in all. These were fed by attentive mothers for about 3 weeks by which time the pups were inflated to a lovely round cuddly shape. Mothers, on the other hand, were looking depleted and decidedly bony. They took the only option available to them and abandoned the pups to fend for themselves. The mother seals took off to build up their own reserves before the male seals mate with them again.
These were a few anxious days for the pups, as they cried for their mothers, but they soon learned that they could fend for themselves after a little initial weight loss.
The male seals have now returned to the rock and are awaiting the arrival of the females.

Cormorants' Nests

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 10:10:00 +0000

Several cormorant nests were photographed at an island site and the young are soon to be fledged.

First Seal Pups Born

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 09:49:00 +0000

3 seal pups were born yesterday and the mothers are guarding them from the black backed gull which is watching their every move. The mother seals encouraged the pups to go into the water beside them and stay close to them as the tide rose. Many more pups will be born in the next week or so.

Dolphins Sighted

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Mon, 19 May 2008 11:01:00 +0000

Dolphins followed the boat yesterday on the lunchtime cruise. They stayed with us for some time and put on a show exhibiting their of power and sense of fun. This was appreciated by all.

Porpoise Sightings

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Sun, 18 May 2008 11:41:00 +0000

Porpoise have been sighted from Mara Mhor on 3 separate occasions this week whilst on two hour cruises. The great northern diver was also seen several times.

New Season Update

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Mon, 12 May 2008 20:18:00 +0000

A cold start to the season ended in May and this encouraged the pregnant female seals to bask in the sun on the rocks once more. Many of last years pups are also in evidence frolicking in the water and looking in great condition.
The great northern diver has been seen on a daily basis in last few weeks.
Dolphins were reported near the Lismore Lighthouse yesterday.

More Dolphins

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 18:37:00 +0000

On two of Mara Mhor's trips today the boat was accompanied by a group of about 5 dolphins. On the first trip of the day we were joined at Cutter Rock in the Sound of Kerrera and the dolphins stayed with us until we returned to Oban bay. On a subsequent trip the dolphins were heading south down the Sound of Kerrera when they saw the boat and turned to swim alongside us for about 15 minutes. They put on another splendid exhibition of jumps and leaps which was enjoyed by all the passengers until they disappeared on reaching the mouth of Loch Feochan.
The obvious enjoyment of the dolphins could be something to do with the shape of the bulbous bows of the catamaran.

Dolphins

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 20:27:00 +0000

One of last week's passengers has e-mailed me this excellent shot of the dolphins taken from Mara Mhor on Friday 5th October.

Dolphin Sightings

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 09:59:00 +0000

On Friday, two days after our dolphin performance of Wednesday, we were treated to another spectacular show. The dolphins joined Mara Mhor around the north west side of Kerrera and followed us frolicking and jumping all the way into Oban bay, much to the delight of the passengers on board and indeed the people walking along the Corran Esplanade, who stood watching in amazement. They came right into the shallows at the slipway before realising how close they were to shore and then took off out to sea again.
On Sunday morning the resident Kerrera otter was spotted in the bay at the north end of the island. It doesn't seem to get too anxious about passing small craft.

Dolphin Sightings

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 19:26:00 +0000

A grey day yesterday was brightened by the appearance of a pod of bottlenose dolphins to
the delight of Mara Mhor passengers.
They joined us as we came past the salmon farm
and spent 40 minutes frolicking around the boat. They were between 7 and 10 in number
and they put on a spectacular display jumping out of the water, twirling and splashing. They were so close at times I was afraid they were actually going to collide with the hull of the boat. They certainly seemed to to enjoy the audience.
On my next trip out to the seal colony they were waiting to accompany the boat again and spent another 45 minutes playing alongside Mara Mhor and followed us back almost into the bay.

Returning male seals

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Sun, 23 Sep 2007 11:32:00 +0000

More returning males are in evidence in the colony this week and some of the younger males are putting on mating displays. One made a spectacular leap right out of the water yesterday morning while the boat was alongside the colony.

Cruise round Island of Kerrera

noreply@blogger.com (Argyll Charters) — Sat, 15 Sep 2007 09:28:00 +0000

Whilst on a round Kerrera trip last Wednesday porpoise were spotted off the south coast of the island.
Thursday brought the return of three male seals to the Seal Island colony. They have not been in evidence all summer but the month of September is mating time once again.