On board the KING SEAWAYS, on the route from Amsterdam to Newcastle, we have set up a Wildlife Centre in cooperation with the British organisation ORCA. ORCA is dedicated to protecting whales and dolphins in European waters. From April to September, the organisation's wildlife officers keep an eye out for various animal species around the ferry and inform our guests on board about the wildlife in the North Sea. Anyone who would like to try their hand at the exciting sport of whale watching is welcome to ask the officers for professional tips.
Our German-speaking wildlife officer Julia tells you about her first mission on board:
After a great start to this year's Wildlife Officer programme here in the North Sea, I took over from my colleague Lucy and spent my first two official weeks on the DFDS ferry KING SEAWAYS. My training week beforehand had gone really well and I was really excited about what to expect. I was really looking forward to getting on the ship myself and leading our Wildlife Officer programme. Of course, I was also looking forward to meeting lots of nice passengers and seeing the different species of animals in the North Sea.
Wildlife Officers Julia & Lucy
Living and working on a ship was a bit of an adjustment at first, but after a few days I got to grips with it pretty well. I also realised very quickly that this is a very special place to spend your time! It's really great that, with the support of DFDS, we have our ORCA Wildlife Centre on board the ferry and that we can introduce a large number of passengers to the wonderful North Sea and all its wildlife. Most people are a little surprised that there are so many different whales and dolphins to be found here!
The ORCA Wildlife Centre on board
Our ORCA Wildlife Centre offers many opportunities to learn about the North Sea and its animal inhabitants. The programme on offer includes, for example, a presentation about the animal species that can be seen on the crossing. Various lectures and documentary films about whales and dolphins are also shown. Twice a day, observations are carried out on the observation deck to spot whales, dolphins and other animals. I was particularly looking forward to this! As my colleague Lucy had seen 20 harbour porpoises and a white-beaked dolphin in her first week, I couldn't wait to see these impressive animals for myself!
A wonderful view over the North Sea
Unfortunately, the passengers and I were not so lucky during my first week: no whales and dolphins to be seen. The main reasons for this were the weather and the high waves. When the sea is choppy and there is a lot of white foam, it is very difficult to see the animals. This is especially true for the harbour porpoises, as they are quite small and only come to the surface briefly to breathe and then quickly disappear again. But luckily you can pretty much always rely on the seabirds! One of the best encounters of the week was a large gannet that glided right over our heads and kept us company for a while. We also saw puffins, guillemots, razorbills, great skuas and various species of terns.
A beautiful gannet
It's also always worth keeping an eye out as we approach the harbours. On the Dutch side of our crossing, in IJmuiden, for example, you can see hundreds of gulls, including great black-backed gulls, herring gulls and herring gulls. You are also usually greeted by the shrill cries of oystercatchers. During my second week on board, together with the passengers, I found a calm North Sea with only small waves - this immediately got me excited, as these are very good conditions for spotting the animals in the water! Unfortunately, there was still no sign of whales or dolphins that day. The next day it was windy again and the sea was choppy. Nevertheless, I was finally lucky enough to see a harbour porpoise. I was really happy about that!
A great black-backed gull with a fish in its beak
My first two weeks on board the DFDS ferry have flown by. It's been an absolutely amazing experience and I'm really looking forward to what this season has in store for us and the passengers. It has been a great pleasure to meet so many passengers from different countries and to hear so many wonderful stories about their animal sightings or holiday experiences. Now I am on board for my next tour of duty and I hope to see many whales, dolphins and other animals together with the passengers in the coming weeks.
If you are interested in finding out more about the wildlife in the North Sea, talk to our Wildlife Officers on board the KING SEAWAYS and look forward to exciting discoveries!
