Wild dolphins of Lovina, Bali

It's my first time seeing so many wild dolphins frolicking in the sea. This was one of the highlights of my Bali trip earlier this month.

This is one of my best shots of the pods of dolphins at Lovina, north of Bali. Lovina actually means I love Indonesia. And I love Lovina because of these magnificient but yet gentle dolphins.

The dolphins that we encountered were mostly the Spinner dolphins (Stenella longirostris). They are known for their for acrobatic displays in which they spin longitudinally along their axis as they leap through the air. Though it is not well understood, it is possible that their spinning behavior is related to communication.

Here are another two of these spectacular dolphins. These fellows are not easy to photograph as they surface and go back into the sea very quickly.

I managed to capture this moment showing the flukes of the dolphin!


Though a picture speaks a thousand words, a video speaks an endless amount of details. Here's a clip showing the dolphins!

It takes a little bit of sacrifice to watch the dolphins. We have to wake up before sunrise in order to catch a glimpse of them as they usually would appear at such early timings in the day.

We also get to enjoy great views of the sunrise at the same time! The sky was quite clear and we were able to get many scenic shots.

However, dolphin watching in Lovina is one of the tourist attractions. Therefore, there will be many boats sailing in the waters to search for dolphins.

Nevertheless, we were actually quite fortunate that morning to see so many pods of dolphins. They seem to be unafraid of so many boats' presence and are comfortable with us getting very close to them and vice versa.

Look! More dolphins?! No.... these are snorkelers!

Yes, the boatmen also arranges of snorkeling trips to the very calm waters of Lovina. Under South Bali, the waters off North Bali are gentle and is perfect for snorkeling!

We later went to the reefs to feed fishes and with my underwater camera, I could take many photos of the fishes and the reef.

Though the tide was not low, the water was extremely clear!

We could see what lies at the sea bed from the top of our boat! Mind you, I did not snorkel or dive to take these photos.

Look, there's even a blue Linckia sea star!

I'm definitely looking forward to come back another time to watch the dolphins. And also to snorkel. Yup, we did not managed to find the time to snorkel as we had to proceed with the other itineraries. So, till next time! :)