Pilot whales of Teno–Rasca, Tenerife
Short-finned pilot whale (Globicephala macrorhynchus), bottlenose dolphin; seasonal Bryde's whales, sperm whales. South-west Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain.
Best time: 1 Jan – 31 Dec (all year). Where: Los Gigantes, Puerto Colón, Costa Adeje, Los Cristianos (Spain). Time of day: Book the earliest sailing (typically 09:00–10:00) — the trade wind and the boat fleet build from late morning.
- Guide, ranger or boat needed
- Paid trip only
- No binoculars needed
- Sound 3/5
Open it in the interactive calendarSunrise and sunset listening times for the day you pick, and the map.
When is the best time?
Peak: 1 Jan – 31 Dec. Resident all year; calm seas most reliable in summer
Active from 1 Jan to 31 Dec (all year) in a typical year.
Time of day
Book the earliest sailing (typically 09:00–10:00) — the trade wind and the boat fleet build from late morning; pilot whales rest at the surface at any hour, so engine-off drifts are the window.
- Morning boat (check times): 09:00 → 12:00
What will you hear?
With a hydrophone: pilot whale whistles and clicks from a resident population of about 500 animals in deep water only 2–3 km offshore; above water, resting groups blowing quietly between boats.
Binoculars?
No binoculars needed. Pilot whales rest at the surface beside the boat; naked eye, hydrophone for the sound.
Where to go
- Los Gigantes — Closest harbour to the deep channel under the cliffs; smaller boats. Map
- Puerto Colón, Costa Adeje — Main whale-watch harbour; dozens of boats daily. Map
- Los Cristianos — Southern departure point; ferries to La Gomera cross the same water. Map
How to go on your own, and what it costs
Boat only: choose a small operator with the 'Barco Azul' licence flag from Los Gigantes, Puerto Colón or Los Cristianos, book the earliest sailing and ask for engine-off drifts. 60 m rule, three boats maximum.
Cost: Licensed whale-watching boats (check current prices).
Free or no-guide alternative: Free and land-based: the Mirador de Archipenque above Los Gigantes and the Punta de Teno lighthouse road look over the same deep channel — resting pilot whale pods are sometimes visible with a scope on a calm day, but nothing like the boat.
Field-recording notes
Boat pressure is the issue: only 'Barco Azul' flagged operators are licensed, the rule is a 60 m limit and three boats within 500 m, and studies show the whales are stressed by traffic — book a small licensed boat and ask for engine-off drifts early in the morning. Ferry noise (fast ferries to La Gomera) is continuous underwater.
Sources
Similar spectacles
Orcas and humpbacks on the winter herring, SkjervøyWith a hydrophone: orca calls, whistles and echolocation from several pods carousel-feeding, humpback social sounds and feeding calls, the hiss of a herring ball being tail-slapped; above water, blows, tail-slaps and the roar of a humpback lunge; fishing vessels' sonar and engines.
Sperm whales of the Bleik canyon, AndenesWith a hydrophone: sperm whale click trains and creaks from 1,000 m down (the operators locate whales acoustically), occasional codas; above water, the explosive blow every 10–15 s at the surface and the tail-fluke dive; fulmars and gannets around the boat.
Grey seal puppingEerie wailing 'singing' of cows, bawling pups and bull snarls, with the surf.
Humpback whales breeding in Sal Rei bay, Boa VistaThe only place on the flyway to put a hydrophone on singing North Atlantic humpbacks: long structured songs that carry kilometres through the bay, plus the slap and crack of breaches and pectoral slaps on calm mornings. Above water it is wind, surf and the outboard.
Conkouati-Douli: humpback whales and leatherback nestingBlows and breaches from the beach, humpback song on a hydrophone from a drifting pirogue, and at night the digging and heavy breathing of a leatherback on a wild beach with no lights for 50 km; chimpanzees pant-hooting from the lagoon islands at dawn.
Harbour porpoises in the Little BeltPorpoises are silent to the ear (their clicks are at 130 kHz) — a hydrophone with a wideband recorder gets the click trains; audibly, the sharp puff of a surfacing blow a few metres off the rocks at Røjle Klint, and the Old Little Belt Bridge traffic.
More: all spectacles in Spain · whales, dolphins and seals · Spain in January · Spain in February · Spain in March · Spain in April · Spain in May · Spain in June · Spain in July · Spain in August · Spain in September · Spain in October · Spain in November · Spain in December