Fieldwork 2017 – that’s all folks!

Commentary by Sara Tavares

Juvenile killer whale. Photo by Sara Tavares.

And this year’s fieldwork is now finished. These were some full 3 months!! We have now packed everything and left the beautiful island of Heimaey. But this was not an easy trip. The bad weather (strong winds that lead to high swell!) made it more complicated than it needed to be, with canceled ferry trips to mainland Iceland and then a ferry trip that took 3 hours (instead of the normal 30 minutes!)... But we eventually made it!

Packed car!

Before the bad weather hit the archipelago, we still had an awesome encounter with killer whales during the last week. These whales were travelling almost non-stop, they had somewhere to go! 3 of the juveniles kept coming close to the research boat, it looked like that they were playing with the bobbles that the engine was making… Very cool to see, but the driver had to be extra-focused since we had to navigate the boat with even more caution than usual, because they were coming so close!

These killer whales were travelling fast, where were they going? Photo by Sara Tavares.

Adult male killer whale travelling. Photo by Sara Tavares.

The Icelandic Orca project will be back next year, and all new fieldwork adventures will be reported here on the blog! Takk fyrir Iceland! Takk fyrir Vestmannaeyjar!