Quicksilver Group News
June 10th, 2009Minke’s Swim with Silverswift Passengers
A delighted group of snorkellers was in awe as a juvenile Minke approached them at their second snorkel site today.
Silverswift, Quicksilver’s adventure dive and snorkel vessel was moored at Flynn Reef at a spot known as Gordons Bommie. The Minke whale the first sighting in the Cairns region approached the snorkellers and interacted by swimming around the snorkellers for thirty minutes.
And Androf, a passenger from Spain could not contain his enthusiasm saying, ” This is the first time I have ever snorkelled and too see a Minke whale is the most amazing experience”
The Minke was estimated to be about 4 – 5 metres long and are naturally inquisitive, and often come close to boats and swimmers. Amy, our crew member who has snorkelled Cairns and Port Douglas for the past six years said “ this is the first time a Minke has approached me in the Cairns reefs”.
The dwarf Minke whale is known only from the Southern Hemisphere. It has a white shoulder and flipper base, with a dark grey tip on the flipper. Dwarf Minke whales are most commonly seen on the outer reefs of the Great Barrier Reef between the months of March and October, with the best viewing time being the June to July period.
A new tourism industry has developed in recent years, where permitted operators take tourists out to specifically swim with these animals, based on voluntary approaches by the whales. Marine biologists are focusing their research efforts on why dwarf minke whales conduct these interactions. The bottom line is – don’t swim to the whale, let the whale swim to you!
