A surprise visitor in Loch Broom
A surprisingly large marine visitor appeared around Loch Broom a couple of weeks back, drawing smiles, cameras and plenty of chatter from both locals and visitors alike. What’s particularly wonderful about this has been the way the community has responded, especially the folks like Noel Hawkins and the Ullapool Sea Savers who have been there with cameras at the ready.
A rare and remarkable sighting
For many of us, cetaceans in our waters are always wonderful to see, but this visitor has been a bit special. Earlier this year, in May, a beluga whale, the kind of pure white whale you’d normally expect much further north in Arctic waters, was spotted in Loch Broom. It was an extraordinary sighting and one that caught the attention of people well beyond our wee town. Reports say the beluga was first noticed by local wildlife guides and was confirmed after people shared footage and photos from around the loch.
What Noel Hawkins and the Sea Savers noticed
Noel Hawkins, well known locally his knowledge of all things marine, his work with Ullapool Sea Savers and Shearwater Cruises, was one of the first to share information about the sighting. Noel’s experience out on the water meant he could recognise straight away that this was something quite out of the ordinary, and that’s saying something given his lifetime of watching whales, dolphins and porpoises in these parts. He and others had to look twice, and then again, before realising that what they were seeing wasn’t your everyday cetacean.
When Noel shared that rare footage and those images with the local wildlife network, it created quite the buzz. People were genuinely excited, but because this was an animal well outside its normal range and alone in shallow water close to shore, there was also a lot of concern. Part of the reaction was simply wanting people to be careful, not to crowd or disturb it, and to let it find its way back to deeper seas if it got disoriented.
Cameras out and community watching
Since then, the dynamic around Loch Broom has remained lively. It seems the whale’s visit has coincided with great numbers of other marine creatures here too. Common dolphins, minke whales and even humpbacks have been spotted occasionally in our waters, and locals armed with binoculars and cameras have been treated to sightings that would have been remarkable even a decade ago. Noel himself has been out on the Ullapool Sea Savers’ boat Mada-Chuain, trying to get identification shots of these visitors whenever conditions allow.
There’s a real sense of everyone getting behind these sightings. People aren’t just snapping photos for social media, they’re reporting them to wildlife recording projects and sharing information so that these animals can be better understood and protected. It has turned ordinary walks along the shore into something much more exciting, with folk stopping to chat, compare sightings and point out fins, backs and spouts to anyone passing by.
Why whales are coming into Loch Broom
Part of what’s tempting these magnificent animals into places like Loch Broom is the abundance of life beneath the surface. There’s excellent forage at the moment, lots of fish and smaller marine creatures, which draws in dolphins and porpoises and, in turn, the larger predators that eat them. Warmer sea temperatures and shifting patterns of prey may also be encouraging species to explore further north and into lochs than we’ve seen in previous years.
A bit of magic on our doorstep
For locals it’s been a bit magical. You walk along the shore on an ordinary day and suddenly there’s a pod of dolphins playing near the harbour mouth. Or someone excitedly waves you over to look at a spout out in the bay, barely believing what they’ve spotted. It reminds you that even in a place as familiar as Ullapool, there’s always something a bit wild and wonderful turning up if you keep your eyes open.
And the photos have been stunning, a reminder that these giants of the sea are not just distant creatures in far-off oceans but neighbours in our waters, if only for a time.
