Onboard with ORCA

July 7, 2015

Tags:

,

Those of you who haven’t travelled on the Newcastle-Amsterdam route may not be aware of the fantastic work done onboard by dolphin & whale charity ORCA’s Wildlife Officers. With ORCA’s deck watches, presentations and more, passengers can learn all about the majestic and fascinating marine wildlife which calls the North Sea home. With deck watches every night, and then again every morning, it’s possible to spot everything from marine birds and harbour porpoises to dolphins, whales and more.

In the last month, our guests onboard have seen the following, plus plenty more:

  • harbour porpoises
  • white-beaked dolphins with a dolphin calf
  • bottlenose dolphins
  • minke whales
  • humpback whales
  • grey seals
  • puffins
  • common scoters
  • gulls
  • curlews
  • gannets
  • jellyfish

There was also a spectacular moment onboard on 11 June, when ORCA staff and passengers were watching a gannet fly close to the front of the ship, making regular dives into the sea, only for a dolphin to leap out of the waves in a majestic arc.

Of course our ORCA Wildlife Officers do more than lead deck watches. Our ORCA centre hosts activities and fun games for children, including porpoise snakes & ladders and a treasure hunt. Earlier this month our ship hosted a group of 48 Polish students, who were taught about the fantastic work that ORCA is doing in preserving the wildlife in the North Sea.

The North East Your Seas project has been shortlisted for a National Lottery Award, which would help immensely in ensuring that ORCA’s Wildlife Officers can continue their work in schools across the region, delivering entertaining and interactive sessions to give children a sense of pride and responsibility over their local seas. Cast your vote!

So if you’re planning a trip on our Newcastle-Amsterdam route onboard KING SEAWAYS then be sure to pay our ORCA centre a visit and see what you can spot on our deck watches. Maybe you can spy a seal, a dolphin or even a whale!

Comments are closed