Common Dolphin

Whales, dolphins and porpoises all frequent the Irish Sea, but our knowledge of how many there may be and where they go is somewhat sketchy. About a dozen species have been recorded since 1980, but only three are seen fairly often. These are the Harbour Porpoise, Bottlenose Dolphin and Common Dolphin. The more rarely seen species are Minke Whale, Fin Whale, Sei Whale, Sperm Whale, Northern Bottlenose Whale, Long-finned Pilot Whale, Killer Whale or Orca, White-beaked Dolphin, Striped Dolphin and Risso's Dolphin.

Harbour Porpoise - This is probably our most common cetacean. It's also our smallest. Unlike its cousins, the dolphins, it doesn't leap out of the water in play. As a result it is rarely seen from land by the casual observer, except as a corpse or bones washed up on the shore.

Bottlenose Dolphin - There are estimated to be only four hundred bottlenose dolphins left in British Waters. The nearest large population to our coast is probably that centred on Cardigan Bay, off west Wales. Individuals and larger pods (as groups of dolphins are known) are occasionally seen off our coast.

Common Dolphin - This is a more southern species of dolphin, with a significant presence in St George's Channel, but recorded sightings appear to be moving further north, possibly due to increasing sea temperatures, and it may be seen more often off our coast in the future.

The Common or Harbour Seal and the Grey Seal are both resident in the Irish Sea. Common seals breed in Strangford Lough, Co Down, grey seals in south west Wales and, in small numbers, on the Isle of Man. Grey Seals haul out, but do not breed, off the islands of Hilbre, Wirral, Merseyside and Walney, Barrow-in-Furness Borough, Cumbria.

Grey Seal - Non-breeding groups of grey seals haul out at the West Hoyle Bank near Hilbre Island off the Wirral Peninsula in south Merseyside; and at Walney Island, Cumbria. Individuals and small groups may occasionally be seen in waters off Lancashire and North Merseyside and some individuals occasionally travel miles upstream in tidal stretches of our rivers.

Harbour Seal -Individuals may very occasionally be seen in our waters, though the main Irish Sea populations are centred on Strangford Lough in Northern Ireland.

Otters frequent the coasts of Cumbria, Dumfries & Galloway, parts of Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and Wales. They are absent from the Isle of Man and there are no recent records for the coasts of Lancashire or Merseyside.

Click here to be taken to the Seawatch Foundation web site, reporting recent sightings of marine mammals in and around the Irish Sea.

Also click here to be taken to Cumbria Wildlife Trust's South Walney Seal Survey

If you find a live stranded whale, dolphin or porpoise on the coasts of England, Scotland or Wales contact the British Divers for Marine Life Rescue. It has a good network of contacts and is active in rescues or assisting others with rescues. Contact telephone number is 01825 765 546.

In Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland the Marine Mammal Rescue Team (MMRT) has a 24-hour contact number at: 283 0800 UNIT 13 99 66 and a mobile number: 087 233 3406 (We presume these numbers will work in both jurisdictions). Alternatively, contact the Irish Whale & Dolphin Group during normal working hours.

We currently have no information for the Isle of Man.