[richiek67]

Are the Dolphins still there. I'd like to take my kids to see them some day perhaps.

Cheers

Rich

[Thargor]

Havent seen them since I made this thread at Christmas to be honest, probably more fun to be had elsewhere in Summer. Make a thread about the best places to see them and someone on this board will know, I know there were 2 or 3 jumping after my uncles boat out near the Aran Islands 2 weeks ago but I dont hear of sightings as much as I used to.

[blackbelt]

Originally Posted by Clearpreso

Disturbing reports from the BRILLIANT Dalkey Tidy Towns newsletter:

"On the afternoon of 24th June around 3pm I witnessed a speedboat which was circling the pod of dolphins at high speed and placing them at risk. The boat in question was a 20 foot (approximately) RIB with a white fibreglass hull and grey flotation tanks. It had what appeared to be a 80-100 horsepower outboard engine and a central steering console.

The person in charge was, in my estimation, grossly reckless. On several occasions he appeared to aim the boat directly at the dolphins and had no concern for their safety. Whilst doing this he was towing a large floating tube with a person in it; he also had several passengers. The incident was witnessed by several yachts and lasted about 10 minutes.

In addition, the RIB in question appeared to be within the safety distance from shore as per coastal regulations. This incident was also witnessed by my daughter from an different vantage point who was equally horrified by the spectacle. I might add, I have not seen the dolphins in the bay since then, although that might be coincidental.’

http://www.dalkeytidytowns.com/wildl...rs/2012_09.htm

This is horrible news if it is the case.24th June was the last time they were reported as sightings from Killiney Bay on the iwdg.ie website.

When is the council going to get their finger out?I swim off Hawk Cliff too and regularly see sppedboats and other vessels come in past the restriction zone and these plonkers on speedboats are coming right up to the edge and past the swimming buoys off the beach where the dolphins would hang out.I blame the people off Bulloch Harbour,.They rent out these speedboats to any Tom,Dick and Harry without a brain cell to rub together and next thing you see them speeding up through Dalkey Sound over to the beach putting the safety of dolphins and swimmers at risk.

[Half-cocked]

Originally Posted by blackbelt

This is horrible news if it is the case.24th June was the last time they were reported as sightings from Killiney Bay on the iwdg.ie website.

When is the council going to get their finger out?I swim off Hawk Cliff too and regularly see sppedboats and other vessels come in past the restriction zone and these plonkers on speedboats are coming right up to the edge and past the swimming buoys off the beach where the dolphins would hang out.I blame the people off Bulloch Harbour,.They rent out these speedboats to any Tom,Dick and Harry without a brain cell to rub together and next thing you see them speeding up through Dalkey Sound over to the beach putting the safety of dolphins and swimmers at risk.

Surely deliberate disturbance of a protected species (and endangerment) is against the law? I use a boat around that area frequently and you get to know a lot of the other vessels. That one sounds quite distinctive, should have been easy to track down. This sort of behaviour needs to be reported to the NPWS immediately and the culprits at the very least given a dressing down.

[Clearpreso]

Originally Posted by blackbelt

This is horrible news if it is the case.24th June was the last time they were reported as sightings from Killiney Bay on the iwdg.ie website.

Sightings are way down alright, but I did see them on July 2nd, oddly enough right at Bulloch harbour having a great old time.