3rd January 2016. Watchkeepers at NCI St Ives were surprised early this morning when they spotted two whales circling inside St Ives bay. Excitement grew however, when these whales were positively identified as Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) by watchkeeper Viv Stratton. Viv has only recently joined the St Ives watch, but having an interest in wildlife enabled him to positively identify the larger of the two as a bull male estimated at about 45 foot long.

Sightings of Humpback whales in Cornish waters is an extremely rare event in itself, and this is the first time in decades that they have been seen this close to land in the St Ives area.

The watchkeepers at St Ives kept a close eye on the whales as at one point there were some fears that the whales may beach themselves as they were being pulled in by the neep tides. However, the whales continued to circle the bay safely for nearly two and a half before finally swimming away. By this time the whales had attracted a large crowd of spectators, all keen to witness this rare event and for the watchkeepers at St Ives it was rare start to the year.

The Photograph shows the smaller of the two whales and is used with the kind permission of Brian Mellow