The coast around Ayrshire can be a great place to see marine mammals all year round.
The Harbour Porpoise Phocoena phocoena is the smallest and most numerous cetacean in the regions waters. It has a small, stout body, with dark grey colouring on the back and a paler patch on the flanks. Unlike a dolphin, it has a small blunt head with no beak and a small triangular dorsal fin. Harbour Porpoises eat a wide variety of small fish and often occur in small groups. Rarely leaping clear of the water, they can be seen in all months of the year.
Two dolphin species can be seen occasionally in the Firth of Clyde. The Common Dolphin Delphinus delphis is a small animal (c. 2m long) with a distinct light-coloured hourglass pattern on the flanks and dark upper body. This species also has a dark triangle below the dorsal fin and a pronounced beak. If seen from a boat, the dolphin often breaches and bow rides as the boat moves along. The Bottlenose Dolphin Tursiops truncatus is a large dolphin (up to 4m in length) with a robust head and a distinct short beak. This species has a uniform dark brown or grey back with a tall, centrally placed dorsal fin, which is usually sickle shaped. The underparts are light grey, changing to white moving towards the belly. The Bottlenose Dolphin often breaches and bow rides, however it is not as agile as its smaller relative.
The largest cetacean likely to be seen around the Ayrshire coast is the Minke Whale Balaenoptera acutorostrata, which can grow to 7-8.5 metres in length. Minke Whales have a slender, pointed triangular head, with a central ridge, with a dark-grey to black head and body, and distinguishing white bands on the flippers. Occasionally other cetaceans are sighted in the regions waters, although such sightings occur very infrequently. A Killer Whale (Orcinus orca) which was spotted swimming alone in the Firth of Clyde in November 2016.
It is also possible to see both of the UK’s seal species around the Ayrshire coast. The Common Seal Phoca vitulina is less than two metres in length and have v-shaped nostrils. They regularly haul themselves out of the water onto rocky shores or sandbanks to rest. The Grey Seal Halichoerus grypus is larger, with the male reaching lengths of up to two meters, and has a long muzzle, which resembles a ‘roman nose’. This species also hauls out, usually between tides, onto rocks or isolated mainland beaches.
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