The Scottish Natural Heritage, in 1999, published a report predicting that the Moray Firth dolphins could disappear within 45 years.

First recorded in 1898, these 129 bottle-nosed dolphins are virtually the same as the ones we associate with the warmer waters of Florida, USA.

There are two populations in Britain, the other being in Cardigan Bay in Wales.
It was distressing for me to learn that for some, as yet unknown reason, 95% of the Moray Firth dolphins are suffering from skin lesions, mushroom type growths, patches and swellings.

Unless something can be done, the future doesn't look good for these graceful creatures.

Many residents of the central belts of Scotland travel to other parts of the country to visit relatives or on holiday. For people who don't live by the sea, it is sometimes a surprise when they notice porpoises and dolphins in our coastal waters.
They are especially prominent along the west coast, where the most common species is the Harbour Porpoise, but this is pushed hard by the Bottle-nosed dolphins, which are quite plentiful around the Isle of Mull.
Another group of dolphins inhabit the coastal waters of the Isle of Isla and, on mainland Argyll, the waters near Crinan have recently become another bottle-nosed dolphin hotspot.

The Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust has been collating a photographic catalogue of these various resident bottle-nosed dolphin groups for the past three years. They are trying to identify individual dolphins and monitor their movements.
Any readers with photographs they would like to contribute to this catalogue should send them to the:

Any dolphin sightings in the west of Scotland waters should be sent to the above address.
Cetacean sightings from other regions of Scotland should be reported directly to the :