Dolphins Up Close with Bertie Gregory

Go, go, go, go.

There's a massive concentration of

shearwaters ahead of us, and all the rest are

ripping in that direction.

Whoa they're crazy!

It's still moving pretty fast.

The predators haven't stabilized

the ball of crayfish yet.

So we've got shearwaters, dolphins,

just seen a whale.

That is crazy!

Okay, let's go.

Go, go, go, go.

Okay, go, go, go, dive, dive, dive.

The Azores.

A remote chain of islands over 900 miles west of Portugal.

Over the last 10 years, I've become completely

obsessed with searching the ocean

for epic gatherings of predators.

In wildlife film, we call these a bait ball,

and they attract a group of predators that you'd never

otherwise see together.

All hunting the same prey at the same time.

At the end of every summer,

a sudden explosion of food draws in ocean

predators from near and far.

Resident dolphins are joined by migrating dolphins,

whales, and sharks.

This could be the most diverse gathering

of predators I've ever filmed.

Yeah, we've not got long to capture this

ocean spectacle because many of the characters

involved are on big, cross-ocean migrations,

and this is the narrow window when all

of them converge on the Azores.

We've got just five weeks before the seasons change,

and many of the dolphins and

other predators start to move on.

You know, finding this predator gathering out

here is gonna be really, really tricky because we

have got a massive area to search.

With over 100,000 square miles of protected

waters to explore, we need local knowledge.

So I've teamed up with a boat crew that know these

waters better than anyone.

Captain Paulo Gaspar was born and raised in the Azores,

sailing and diving here his entire life.

Second in command is Marianna Antunes,

an experienced skipper and marine biologist.

So we're obviously searching a massive

area of ocean.

How are we gonna find the action?

-You must look for shearwaters,

more shearwaters, more activity.

You only need to follow the direction of them

and then you will see a bait ball.

Cory's shearwaters are experts

at hunting schools of fish from above.

How many shearwaters are we talking together?

-Two or 3,000 at the same time and a lot of noise.

-If it's insane, the bait ball it's waa, waa, waa, waa.

Waa, waa, waa, yeah.

Right now, nearly half a million shearwaters

are here for the breeding season.

We don't have to wait long before they provide

our first lead.

We've got a lot of shearwaters all moving that way,

and that is a great sign there's action.

I think we need to get out in the fast boat.

Let's do this.

Okay, got it.

Yep, yep, let's go.

-Got this big raft and I reckon,

but I thought they were just sat on the surface resting,

but actually, you can hear that squabbling noise

they're feeding.

Let me get my snorkeling gear on and just gently drift over,

see what's going on underneath the water.

Ali, can you chuck me the camera once I'm in?

Thanks.

Underwater, I can see what's on the menu.

Hundreds of jack mackerel huddled together in a small,

dense, swirling sphere.

It's a bait ball.

Formed when fish are under attack.

Skipjack tuna strike from below.

And shearwaters attack from above.

It's impressive, but I know these events happen

on a much bigger scale.

Those shearwaters, they're so graceful underwater,

they look like angels diving down into the deep.

And what we saw there, that's a miniature version

of what we're looking for.

To find a giant bait ball,

we need to maximize our time on the water.

So for the next five weeks,

this boat will be our home and filming platform.

With me is friend and specialist

cinematographer, Jeff Hester.

Well, we're out nice and early.

Sun's just popped up over the horizon behind

that beautiful volcano.

And we're scanning the horizon 'cause first thing in

the morning and last thing in the afternoon, early evening,

those are our prime times for bait balls.

Yeah, Paulo there's, there's a big pod of dolphins

straight off the bow, they're coming this way now.

How many meters in front?

200. Okay.

Whoa.

Like the shearwaters, dolphins are always on the

lookout for fish and could lead us to a bait ball.

Whoa!

Got a huge group of spotted dolphins.

This is a really good sign.

Yeah, any day you see, a dolphin is a good day.

Each year, thousands of dolphins migrate to the Azores,

drawn here by the seasonal boom in fish numbers.

So right now, these dolphins are cruising along,

and they'll be pinging out echolocation.

That's their, their sonar to detect prey.

So we're gonna stick with the dolphins.

Hope they lead us to some action.

That is really interesting,

every single dolphin has disappeared.

They've all gone...

...down into the deep.

Which makes me think they must have detected

prey down there and they're trying to

round it up and bring it up to the surface.

So we could be in for some action here.

Okay, Jeff. You ready?

We're ready. Let's go.

As we jump on the fast boat,

the dolphins resurface.

Look at them all.

Racing at speeds of nearly 40 miles per hour.

Wha, ho, ho, ho.

It's clear they're in pursuit.

We've just got shearwaters zooming around everywhere.

This is looking really good.

What we're waiting for is the shearwaters

to all start diving down into the water,

that means the food is at the surface.

So it's a really good concentration over here,

and all the others seem to be heading over to join them.

These feeding frenzies can vanish as quickly as they form.

We could be on here.

We need to get into position, and fast.

Birds look good there, Paulo.

I see.

Okay, let's go, go, go, go, go, go.

The dolphins work as a team,

vocalizing to coordinate their attack.

Their aim is to trap the school at the surface,

then force it into a tight formation.

Thousands of jack mackerel swim for their lives.

It seems like the dolphins are tiring.

They're struggling to contain the fish.

The jack mackerel win this round.

This side, this side, this side.

It's carnage everywhere.

It didn't quite come together.

We had a big pass from all the fish,

but it didn't feel like there was enough predators,

enough dolphins on it, so, uh.

Yeah, we've lost the light now,

and it seems like the action's died down.

So, try again another day.

It's promising to see the shearwaters and dolphins

hunting together, but even in a wildlife haven

like the Azores, nature is still unpredictable.

To find the predator gathering we're looking for,

I need more eyes out searching.

So I'm heading inland, where history provides

a surprising perspective.

The nutrient-rich waters of the Azores draw

in a third of the world's whale and dolphin species,

an abundance that in the past had tragic consequences.

For centuries, these islands were

an international hub for whale hunting.

Animals were killed to make oil for lamps,

candles, and cosmetics.

The meat was also a local food supply.

It's pretty crazy to learn that whale hunting

happened in the Azores until the late 1980s,

and that ban is so recent that it's actually possible

for me to go and meet one of the ex-whalers,

and his job is still to spot whales,

but for a very different reason.

Daniel.

Good morning!

Good morning!

Known locally as a "vigia,"

a person that keeps watch, Daniel Martiniano,

used to spot whales for hunting.

He now spots them for the islands' booming

whale watching industry.

Thank you.

Waa, crazy view.