September tends to be a good month for whale watching in Madeira as part of the migration season... Let's see which sea mammals species will swim around Madeira coast:

Week 37: From the 12th to the 18th of September 2022
Sperm whale Physeter macrocephalus
Short-finned pilot whale Globicephala macrorhynchus
Common Bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus
Atlantic spotted dolphin Stenella frontalis

Week 36: From the 5th to the 11th of September 2022
Fin whale Balaenoptera physalus
Bryde's whale Balaenoptera edeni
Blainville's beaked whale Mesoplodon densirostris
Cuvier's beaked whale Ziphius cavirostris
Common Bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus
Atlantic spotted dolphin Stenella frontalis
Striped dolphin Stenella coeruleoalba

High season for tourism rises the observation effort for dolphins and whales all around the archipelago...

Week 34: From 22nd to the 28th of August 2022
Fin whale Balaenoptera physalus
Bryde's whale Balaenoptera edeni
Sperm whale Physeter macrocephalus
Cuvier's beaked whale Ziphius cavirostris
Blainville's beaked whale Mesoplodon densirostris
Pygmy killer whale Feresa attenuata
Common Bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus
Rough-toothed dolphin Steno bredanensis
Risso's dolphin Grampus griseus
Atlantic spotted dolphin Stenella frontalis
Striped dolphin Stenella coeruleoalba

Last month brought some uncommon sea mammals to Madeira ocean and as July is also a good month for whalewatching, let's see which cetaceans visit us!

Week 30: From 25th to 31st Jul 2022
Bryde's whale Balaenoptera edeni
Sei whale Balaenoptera borealis
Sperm whale Physeter macrocephalus
Blainville's beaked whale Mesoplodon densirostris
Short-finned pilot whale Globicephala macrorhynchus
Common Bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus
Rough-toothed dolphin Steno bredanensis
Atlantic spotted dolphin Stenella frontalis

Summer months attract a few more species to the warmer waters of Madeira ocean. Here are the cetacean species observed around Madeira archipelago:

Week 26: From 27th June to 3rd Jul 2022
Sei whale Balaenoptera borealis
Risso's dolphin Grampus griseus
Rough-toothed dolphin Steno bredanensis
Common Bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus
Striped dolphin Stenella coeruleoalba
Atlantic spotted dolphin Stenella frontalis
Sperm whale Physeter macrocephalus

May... we get a good season for whale watching in Madeira and may the cetaceans have a better ocean to live in!

Week 21: From 23rd to 29th of May 2022
Risso's dolphin Grampus griseus
Short-beaked common dolphin Delphinus delphis
Atlantic Spotted dolphin Stenella frontalis
Short-finned pilot whale Globicephala macrorhynchus
Sperm whale Physeter macrocephalus

This website is developed by Wind Birds' company as a contribute to the knowledge and conservation of whales and dolphins species around the Madeira archipelago and to promote whale watching in a sustainable way.

26 species of cetaceans are confirmed records for Madeira archipelago waters and three species remain as dubious records as there are not enough evidence to allow a definite identification of the species.

One can not write about whale watching without mentioning whaling, as that was how it all started... So we begin by framing historically the whaling industry in Madeira archipelago and the use of its products.
In Madeira, whale watching as a recreational activity started mainly after the end of whaling, when chances to observe whales or dolphins increased for the boats operating coastal or big game fishing trips. By then whale watching was randomly done when by luck a group of cetaceans crossed the course of those trips and the passengers had the chance to observe them. As a dedicated commercial and tourist activity, with companies promoting and running sea trips devoted to the observation of whales and dolphins only started in 2004. From then on whale watching had an average growth of one new boat operating per year.