10 exciting facts about common dolphins

1. As the name suggests, common dolphins are the most common dolphin species in the world. 2. There are 2 species of common dolphin - short-beaked and long-beaked, however, the common dolphins found around the UK are the short-beaked species. 3. Common dolphins are easily recognisable by their characteristic creamy-yellow and grey hourglass pattern along their sides with a dark grey back and pale underside. 4. They are one of the smaller members of the dolphin family with adults measuring 1.7-2.7 metres in length and weighing up to 135kg. 5. They are fast swimmers reaching speeds of 15mph and are highly energetic, acrobatic dolphins. Their leaping and splashing can be seen from great distances. 6. Common dolphins are often attracted to boats and can be seen bow riding the pressure waves of fast moving boats and even large whales, sometimes even changing course to do so. 7. They are highly vocal and their high-pitched squeals can often be heard easily above the surface. 8. In Europe common dolphins tend to travel in groups of around 20 but can be seen in larger groups of over 100 and in other parts of the world they have been known to congregate in groups of several hundreds, even thousands! 9. They are opportunistic feeders eating a wide variety of squid and fish but mainly feed on schooling fish, working collectively to dive fish into bait balls near the surface. This feeding strategy often attracts gannets so if you see diving gannets, this could be an indicator of dolphins feeding. 10. As they feed on the same fish species that fisheries target, common dolphins face the risk of accidental by-catch and net entanglement causing them to become injured or drown. Buying line-caught fish is not only more sustainable for fish stocks, but is also safer for dolphins and other sealife.

10 fun facts about our local grey seals

1. The grey seal's Latin name Halicoerus grypus means "hooked-nose sea pig". 2. The grey seals that inhabit the waters around the UK make up 40% of the world's grey seal population. 3. Adults can weigh around 230kg and reach an average of 2.3 metres in length. 4. Males are larger than females and have a characteristic large, curved "Roman" nose with plain darker grey fur, whereas the females have a smaller, straighter nose with lighter silvery, mottled fur. 5. Pups are born in and around the Autumn months covered in fluffy white fur but after a month or so they shed their pup fur for their waterproof adult fur. 6. Born at a weight of around 13kg, the pups will feed on their mother's rich milk for up to 4 weeks until they reach 3-4 times their birth weight. They will then be weaned from their mother and left to learn to feed for themselves. 7. Mothers will often leave their pups on rocks or beaches for up to a couple of hours at a time to feed or rest so if you see a seal pup on its own, do not approach it! A protective mother may not be far away! 8. Grey seals are opportunistic feeders and eat a wide variety of fish and crustaceans but sand eels are their preferred meal of choice which can put them into conflict with fishermen. 9. When feeding they can dive to depths as deep as 120 metres for up to 12 minutes at a time. 10. Grey seals can live 25-35 years with the females tending to outlive the males.

Jenny our new summer guide

We have a new addition to the team at Padstow Sealife Safaris! Jenny is from Aberdeen, Scotland but has been living in Cornwall for the last 3 years. She originally studied International Tourism Management at RGU in Aberdeen and spent a placement year working at Animal Kingdom, Walt Disney World, Orlando where she discovered a passion for animals. This led Jenny down to Cornwall to study Zoological Conservation at Cornwall College Newquay. Living and studying right on the coast peaked Jenny's interest in marine life, carrying out her own research on grey seals around the Cornish coast. In January this year she spent 3 months in North Holland doing an internship at a seal rescue and rehabilitation centre getting some hands-on experience caring for sick and injured grey and common seals. This summer she will be putting her knowledge into practice as your guide on our 1 hour seals cave tours.