Cromarty Rising

Resident cetaceans or those regularly seen in Scottish inshore waters in significant numbers:

•   Bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus
•   Harbour porpoise, Phocoena phocoena
•   White-beaked dolphin, Lagenorhynchus albirostris
•   Short-beaked common dolphin, Delphinus delphis
•   White-sided dolphin, Lagenorhynchus acutus
•   Risso’s dolphin, Grampus griseus
•   Minke whale, Balaenoptera acutorostrata
•   Killer whale, Orcinus orca

  Cetaceans that do occur in Scottish inshore waters, although usually not in significant numbers:

•   Sperm whale, Physeter macrocephalus
•   Long-finned pilot whale, Globicephala melas
•   Fin whale, Balaenoptera physalus
•   Humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae

  Vagrants or rare species – Cetaceans that are only rarely found in Scottish inshore waters:

•   Striped dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba
•   Northern bottlenose whale, Hyperoodon ampullatus
•   Cuvier’s beaked whale, Ziphius cavirostris
•   Sowerby’s beaked whale, Mesoplodon bidens
•   True’s beaked whale, Mesoplodon mirus
•   Sei whale, Balaenoptera borealis
•   Blue whale, Balenoptera musculus
•   Beluga whale, Delphinapterus leucas
•   Northern right whale, Eubalaeana glacialis
•   False killer whale, Pseudorca crassidens
•   Pygmy sperm whale, Kogia breviceps

  Other EPS that occur in Scottish waters:

  •   Leatherback turtle, Dermochelys coriacea (frequent visitors)
  •   Loggerhead turtle, Caretta caretta
  •   Kemp’s Ridley turtle, Lepidochelys kempii
  •   Green turtle, Chelonia mydas
  •   Atlantic sturgeon, Acipenser sturio

At a cursory glance, the Moray Firth not only has botltenose dolphin but also harbour porpoise, minke whale, killer whale, occasional humpback whale and very occasional northern bottlenose whale and pilot whales.