A guide to the many different dolphins off the coast of Hualien, Taiwan
A guide to the many different dolphins off the coast of Hualien, Taiwan
2023-06-08
Taiwan’s East Coast is one of the best spots in the world to see dolphins and whales. There are more than 30 cetacean species off the coast of Hualien, and whale watching is big business during the summer. Tens of thousands of people head out onto the water in the hope of glimpsing these magnificent marine mammals in their natural habitat. Today we take a look at some of the different dolphins you can spot on a boat trip.
Sunshine reflects off the sea. And from all directions, dolphins converge around the passengers on the boat.
April to October is the season for whale and dolphin watching. Dolphins normally hang around three to five kilometers from the shore, while larger whales are 10 kilometers out. So most of the time, the star of the show is the more visible dolphin.
One of the most common species to see is the Spinner Dolphin, with its long thin nose and ingenious dance moves. The Risso’s Dolphin is called the “Stripey Dolphin” because it tends to accumulate lots of thin stripey scars over its lifetime. Fraser’s Dolphin has a distinctive black stripe running from above its eye all down its side to the tail. And the Pantropical Spotted Dolphin has – you guessed it – lots of black spots, more and more as the years go by.
Lu Shih-ming
Turumoan Dolphin and Whale Watching Company
You can see more than 30 different species of whales and dolphins on the sea off Hualien. That’s a third of all the species we can name in the whole world.
Taiwan’s East Coast is a spectacular mountainous terrain, and the seafloor here is also covered in ups and downs. The Kuroshio Current flows yearlong. Its fast-flowing waters carry migratory fish down the coast, and stir up nutritious salts from the seabed. All that vibrant marine life attracts dolphins and whales to come hunting.
Lu Shih-ming
Turumoan Dolphin and Whale Watching Company
Taking our company as an example, we have about 30,000 customers a year. Going by the average price, which is NT$600-700 per person, our turnover is about NT$30 million.
Dolphins are very intelligent creatures who love to play with humans. Scientists say they have an IQ to rival a six or seven-year-old child. They can understand complicated hand gestures, and perform tasks easily. And making contact with them is a good livelihood for many people in Hualien.
東部出海"賞鯨豚" 業者:每年營業額最高上千萬
2023-06-08
每年四月到十月是賞鯨船出海的季節，台灣東部海域，都會吸引各地遊客搭船出海賞鯨。台灣的賞鯨行程，出海的範圍大多是在沿岸3到5海里的海域內，值得一提的是，花蓮海域中小型鯨豚可見率高達9成以上，其中以海豚最為常見，有業者表示，每年賞鯨季可為自家帶來3萬名左右的遊客，最高營業額達上千萬元。
陽光照在海上，波光粼粼，坐在船上，可愛的海豚從四面八方游來。
每年四月到十月是賞鯨船出海的季節，海豚通常在沿岸3到5海里之處，大型鯨類則是在10海里外，所以賞"鯨"，其實大部分是’’賞海豚’’。
常見的是長吻飛旋海豚，嘴巴細長，舞動靈巧；花紋海豚，因身上有多處像是傷痕累累的刮痕，隨著時間會不斷累積而得名；弗氏海豚，眼睛後方有細黑條紋 延長到身後；熱帶斑海豚，身體側邊有黑色暗斑，年紀越大斑點越多。
[[多羅滿賞鯨公司總經理 呂世明]]
"在花蓮出海看到鯨豚的種類，已經高達了三十幾種，占全世界所知道名字的三分之一這麼多"
台灣東部是陡降地形，水深變化較大，終年有黑潮流經，偏快的流速帶來洄游性魚類，也翻攪出海底的營養鹽，豐富的生物活動，吸引鯨豚出沒覓食。
[[多羅滿賞鯨公司總經理 呂世明]]
"以我們家為例，一年的人數大概是將近3萬人左右，如果以平均單價，一個人大概是六、七百塊，以這樣子來講，營業額大概是三千萬左右"
海豚親人，也聰明，智商相當於人類6、7歲，可以理解複雜手勢，表演任務對他們來說易如反掌，也為業者帶來觀光財。
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