Filters: All | In the News | Events & Outreach | Silurian | Sightings | Science & Research | Hebridean Whale Trail | Expedition Summaries | Climate Change | Kids Blogs
The final research expedition of the 2022 summer field season has ended on a high, with fair weather (makes a wonderful change for the 2022 field season), fantastic encounters and memorable moments. Here Craig Mckie, Science Officer on board, recalls the highlights.
Read MoreOur sixteenth research expedition of 2022 left Tobermory for a 12-day survey monitoring the marine environment of the Hebrides onboard Silurian - our research vessel. Tricky weather persisted throughout the trip but our determined bunch of volunteers continued to survey in all weather conditions to try and spot some marine mammals. Here, Hannah Lightley, Science Officer onboard recalls the expedition.
Read MoreOur fifteenth research expedition of 2022 left Tobermory for a week long survey to monitor the waters off the west coast of Scotland. A changeable week of weather created some challenges for those on board Silurian - our research vessel - but the team was rewarded with some memorable encounters. Here Craig Mackie, Science Officer on board, recalls the expedition
Read MoreOur fourteenth research expedition of 2022 left Tobermory for a seven-day survey monitoring Hebridean waters onboard Silurian - our research vessel. Treated to great weather and fantastic sightings, citizen scientists onboard encountered seven different species of marine megafauna. Hannah Lightley, Science Officer onboard, talks about the expedition…
Read MoreOur thirteenth research expedition of 2022 left for twelve days at sea, gathering vital visual and acoustic data off Scotland’s west coast. Calm weather and fair seas resulted in some fantastic encounters, with common dolphins heralding in the day almost daily! Craig Mackie, Science Officer onboard, recalls the expedition
Read MoreOur twelfth research expedition of 2022 left Tobermory for a seven-day survey monitoring the marine environment onboard Silurian - our research vessel. Wild weather returned but our team of citizen scientists powered through with a lot of laughs and continued to collect vital acoustic and visual data coupled with some fantastic sightings. Here Hannah Lightley, Science Officer onboard, recalls the expedition…
Read MoreOur second Teen Trip of the year circumnavigated Mull, calling in overnight at Colonsay and Coll. Here the teens recount their experience of their time spent on board Silurian surveying Hebridean Seas.
Read MoreEvery year, we offer dedicated teen research expeditions, providing young people with the skills, and experience of being a marine scientist on board a working research yacht. In this blog the teens recount their experience surveying Hebridean Seas.
Read MoreThe ninth research expedition of the 2022 summer field season proved exceptional. Summer conditions finally arrived and a number of different species were recorded. Although minke whales stole the show - with a fantastic encounter with a breaching whale. Read Science Officer, Craig Mackie’s account of the expedition
Read MoreMarking the middle of the summer 2022 research expeditions, Silurian - our research vessel - set sail from Tobermory monitoring Hebridean seas. Tricky weather conditions continued but our team of volunteer citizen scientists powered through to help gather vital visual and acoustic data and were rewarded with some incredible encounters. Here Hannah Lightley, science officer onboard, describes the expedition.
Read MoreSilurian - our research vessel - and her team of dedicated volunteers circumnavigated the Isle of Lewis during the seventh research expedition of the 2022 summer field season. Battling through some challenging conditions, the team were rewarded with some great encounters on the way back to Stornoway. Here Craig Mackie, Science Officer on board, recalls the expedition
Read MoreAs we move into ‘Summer’ off Scotland’s west coast, thanks to the team of volunteer citizen scientists we continue to monitor Hebridean seas, gathering vital visual and acoustic data. Despite some challenging weather conditions, our stoic team on board were rewarded with some interesting encounters. Here, Hannah Lightley, Science Officer on board summarises the expedition.
Read MoreMonitoring Hebridean seas is well underway, with Silurian - our research vessell - completing her fifth expedition of the 2022 Summer field season. Some great conditions allowed us to gather data from some of the more remote and exposed parts of our study area. Here, Craig Mackie, Science Officer on board, recalls details of the expedition
Read MoreEvery year, we welcome aboard teams of students from St Andrew’s University Sea Mammal Research Unit (SMRU) to discover how we collect data on board our research vessel, Silurian. Over the course of 10 days, each team spent time travelling to different areas of the west coast, collecting vital visual and acoustic data on marine mammals. Each of the teams share their experiences here
Read MoreWe’re well underway with our monitoring Hebridean seas this year, with Silurian, our research vessel, completing her fourth expedition of the 2023 summer field season. Some challenging conditions didn't dampen the spirits of the fantastic citizen scientists who joined us on board…the encounters with whales, dolphins and porpoises helped too!
Read MoreOur second research expedition of the summer field season was exceptional - recording a total of seven marine mammal species, including killer whales, John Coe and Aquarius of the West Coast Community! Hannah, our Science Officer on board who leads the data collection programme shares her experience
Read MoreWe’re off!! The summer field season (April - October) on board our research vessel, Silurian, has started. Despite battling challenging conditions, the team on board remained steadfast. Hannah, our scientist who led the data collection on board, shares the expedition update
Read MoreOur winter survey programme on board Silurian has been running since 2019, learning more about the year-round presence of marine mammals and basking sharks in Hebridean seas. These surveys are important given that prior to the start of the programme, little winter data existed for the region. Science Officer, Jenny, gives an update on the last winter survey of this year…
Read MoreCraig Mackie gives us an update on the first winter expedition of 2021, where a couple of ‘summer visitors’ were recorded. The winter survey programme, funded by Nature Scot, is helping us improve our year-round understanding of Hebridean marine environment
Read MoreSilurian battled through strong winds and heavy showers on our latest acoustic expedition. In total, we surveyed over 330 nautical miles, collecting over 60 hours of acoustic recordings.
Read More
