The pelagic trip scheduled for 21st March had to be delayed to the
following week. This is the report of the trip performed on 29th March... very early in the morning: the change of hour let us to start before dawn and half-asleep. As we left the harbour of O Grove, we crossed the polygons of mussel rafts, with European Shags, Great Cormorants, Yellow-legged and Lesser Black-backed Gulls, Sandwich Terns and Bottlenosed Dolphins. From this point we head west till the island of Sálvora, in the Atlantic Island NP, and by the southern tip we saw our first Northern Gannet and, short after it, the first Atlantic Puffin.
Further west from the island, the first miles deserved us increasing numbers of Northern Gannets, some Common Dolphins, another Atlantic Puffin and a flyby Razorbill/Guillemot.
Around the 'chum' 12 nm off Sálvora there were good numbers of gulls, along with some Mediterranean Gulls, Sandwich Tern, 8 Great Skuas, 1 Arctic Skua and a Sunfish.
Already in the way back two other Atlantic Puffins popped up, with more Great Skuas and Northern Gannets. Once inside the 'ría', more European Shags and Yellow-legged Gulls were observed, and more Bottlenosed Dolphins, Great Black-backed and Black-headed Gulls and Ruddy Turnstones.
Althoug the 'stars' were the Puffin, the good numbers of Great Skuas were also remarkable.
Here below is the detailed list of species, with highlights in bold and approximate numbers in italics:
