19-08-2005, 11:08 AM
Possibly another fringe benefit of global warming? I know that flying fish have been caught further north in the English Channel as well - also as a result of the increase in sea temperatures...
Dolphin spectacle baffles experts
A group of up to 2,000 common dolphins has been spotted off the coast of west Wales.
Marine experts said it was "massively unusual" to see so many off the Pembrokeshire coast, and the reason remained a mystery.
Cliff Benson, who runs Sea Trust, the marine branch of the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales, said it had been an incredible sight.
"It's fairly normal to see a hundred or so, but not thousands."
Mr Benson, who carries out regular survey work on cetaceans - dolphins, whales, and porpoises - was on his boat when he saw the dolphins approaching.
"It was like a volcanic eruption," he said. "There were dolphins of all ages - adults and mothers with their babies - and they were leaping out of the water.
"It's a mystery as to why there were so many. It could be because the waters are so rich in food, and that there aren't many predators.
"They could be coming here specifically to breed because the conditions are so right."
Mr Benson, who lives in Llanwnda, near Fishguard, is keen to get the Pembrokeshire coast marketed to tourists who enjoy seeing marine life.
"People think they have to go to Florida to see dolphins leaping out of the water, but it's all right here," he said.
"We should be marketing this area as 'The Dolphin Coast', and encouraging tourists to come here and spend their money to boost the local economy.
"There's a small coastal village in Ireland that has a particularly friendly dolphin, and people travel hundreds of miles to see him. He's worth £5m a year to that village."
Dolphin spectacle baffles experts
A group of up to 2,000 common dolphins has been spotted off the coast of west Wales.
Marine experts said it was "massively unusual" to see so many off the Pembrokeshire coast, and the reason remained a mystery.
Cliff Benson, who runs Sea Trust, the marine branch of the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales, said it had been an incredible sight.
"It's fairly normal to see a hundred or so, but not thousands."
Mr Benson, who carries out regular survey work on cetaceans - dolphins, whales, and porpoises - was on his boat when he saw the dolphins approaching.
"It was like a volcanic eruption," he said. "There were dolphins of all ages - adults and mothers with their babies - and they were leaping out of the water.
"It's a mystery as to why there were so many. It could be because the waters are so rich in food, and that there aren't many predators.
"They could be coming here specifically to breed because the conditions are so right."
Mr Benson, who lives in Llanwnda, near Fishguard, is keen to get the Pembrokeshire coast marketed to tourists who enjoy seeing marine life.
"People think they have to go to Florida to see dolphins leaping out of the water, but it's all right here," he said.
"We should be marketing this area as 'The Dolphin Coast', and encouraging tourists to come here and spend their money to boost the local economy.
"There's a small coastal village in Ireland that has a particularly friendly dolphin, and people travel hundreds of miles to see him. He's worth £5m a year to that village."