Pilot Whales
Here are some pictures of a large pod of Pilot whales which visited us on our passage from Horta in the Azores to Falmouth in England on 12th June 2001 in 48 13.7N 11 15.2W (about 250M West of the Lizard).
This one is "bow-riding" under the starboard bow and you can see the pulpit, anchor, and Tom's right welly and hand.
- and a little more than 3 years afterwards in a position not all that far away by oceanic standards on Sunday 1st August 2004 in 48 30'.4N 10 57'.2W we are visited again by a pod of Pilot Whales and may I let the discerning reader decide whether some were the same Pilot Whales or not ...
A few days before on Tuesday 27th July 2004 I had been sailing through a sea populated by dozens of baby Portuguese Man O' War jellyfish. These I observed with interest but it was a few days later that I have a windy enough night to have some seas come on to the deck and deposit some of these jellyfish for me to have a closer look ...
Several views of the Portuguese Men O' War jellyfish that came aboard on the top of waves on the night of 30th July and got stuck to the deck - they are propelled at sea by their sails and display an interesting Fresnel lens quality in their bodies. (The Fresnel lens is the kind of compound lens used to focus lighthouse beams).
The Portuguese Man-Of-War
with Thanks to http://www.key-biscayne.com/beach_park/facts/manowar.shtml
for the following information ...
| The Portuguese
Man-Of-War is a jelly-like marine animal that looks like a fragile
blue bubble. These sea creatures are infamous for their very
painful, powerful sting and very common in the tropical and subtropical
regions of the Pacific and Indian oceans, and the northern Atlantic Gulf
Stream which are the waters just off the island paradise of Key
Biscayne. It is sometimes found floating, and often found washed
ashore, normally in the winter months and when the winds are blowing
onshore.
Some of the tentacles of the Portuguese Man-Of-War bear stinging nematocystic (coiled thread-like) structures that paralyze small fish and other prey. The sting of the Portuguese Man-Of-War is very painful to man and can cause serious effects, including fever, shock, and interference with heart and lung action. Pick off any visible tentacles. Rinse with fresh or salt water. Apply ice for pain. IMMEDIATE MEDICAL ATTENTION MAY BE REQUIRED as their stinging may bring about shock. The toxin secreted from the tentacles of the Portuguese Man-Of-War are about seventy-five percent as powerful as cobra venom. The most common result of contact with the Portuguese Man-Of-War are the residual whip-like, red wavy, stringy welts on the skin from contact with the blue tentacle. The lesions can last for minutes to hours. Portuguese Man-Of-War are not always obvious in the water. Tentacles may break away in the surf and inflict stings just as potent as those from attached tentacles. Even dead specimens stranded on the beach can still cause stings. Do not touch these animals with bare skin and do not enter the water if they are present. |
Do link to any of the following pages or link to any page shown on the left :-
Home Page Azores-Falmouth Visit to Pico StMartin-Azores Ramprasad I 12 Year Project Return to UK
or click here for a link to the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society
The
man-of-war's body consists of a gas-filled, bladder-like float (a polyp,
called the pneumatophore) - a translucent structure tinted pink, blue,
or violet - which may be 3 to 12 inches (9 to 30 centimeters) long and
may extend as much as 6 inches (15 centimeters) above the water. Beneath
the float are clusters of polyps, from which hang tentacles of up to 165
feet (about 50 meters) in length. The "animal" moves by
means of its crest, (pictured here tinted pink) which functions as a
sail.