Donegal whale sighting ‘best day’ of Derg man’s life

A CASTLEDERG man was one of a small crew to witness a humpback whale breaching off the coast of Donegal earlier this week.

James Garvey was out on a boat chartered by Omagh vet, Kieran Corry, when they seen the majestic beast on Donegal Bay.

Speaking with this newspaper, James, who is the owner of Rossnowlagh Surf School, said that spotting the benign sea monster was one of the ‘best moments’ of his life.

“We saw the humpback breaching in the bay on Tuesday,” began James. “It was a phenomenal day that none of us will ever forget.”

‘Breaching’ is when a whale propels itself out of the water.

The improbability of the event glaringly apparent to James, he likened it to winning the lottery.

“I don’t know the odds of winning the lottery but this was the same thing for a whale lover. A nature lover’s lottery win,” he said.

James was part of a small crew who headed out on the water on Tuesday to catch a glimpse of ten minke whales and an estimated 500 common and bottlenose dolphins.

“Then the holy grail appeared… I’m still not over it,” he said.

“Every time you meet a whale it’s just an incredible experience. It’s breath-taking given their size, and how curious they are about people.

“Basically it’s a pretty rare occurrence that a humpback whale would be spotted in Donegal Bay, but for one to put on an incredible performance just half an hour from Rossnowlagh is unbelievable.

“We saw a huge array of whale behaviour including four huge breaches, bubble-netting and fluke-slapping.”

Bubble-netting is a method of surface feeding for whales, while fluke-slapping refers a behaviour whereby they slap their fins against the water to communicate with each other, as well as other animals.

The whale has been identified as #HBIRL24 and he has been seen at least 45 times in the past 11 years.

James said, “We do a lot of coastal tours with Rossnolwagh Surf School, so I be out on the water a lot, but seeing this was not something I had ever really imagined.

“I love wildlife, it’s my passion, so I will never forget this day!”