20 Jun 2012

Steller Sea Lion Escort

Our inaugural Sea of Okhotsk expedition is drawing to a close. We have travelled to our furthest north and have now turned south to follow the west coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula towards Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy.

Our visit to the Yamskiy Islands was always going to be a highlight and certainly didn’t disappoint. It is estimated that approx 6 million Least Auklets nest here. We didn’t see them all, but we did see thousands and thousands of them wheeling and circling overhead. This has to be one of the great “bird wonders” of the world.

We also spent time with Steller Sea Lions. The breeding colony here is the most northern colony of these animals, and there were about 800 in the group. As you can see below, we were escorted by many of the inquisitive sub adult males.