27 June 2026 Report
OVERVIEW
Rainy, passing showers. 18C. Winds SE to 8 knots. Seas 1.5m. Sea surface temperatures 19.5C.
TRIP SUMMARY
What a day this trip turned out to be. We left the harbour into a relatively calm sea with little wind to speak of. That typically is a sign activity will be supressed. Fortunately that wasn't to be the case.
The first of the Albatrosses were encountered fairly quickly. There have been many Black-browed Albatrosses close to shore off the Sydney coast recently so it wasn't surprising to encounter a few. Within 5 NM we had added Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross as well as the only Crested Tern we were to see during the trip.
Around 3 NM from the drift point an odd looking sulid was spotted flying low over the water. The bird flew close enough to identify, a Red-footed Booby. That was the first signal the day wasn't typical. We have only had four previous records of Red-footed Booby, so they're a bit of a rarity to begin with. All of the records are from February and March.
We managed to drag the Albatross over the shelf break and out to the drift. The predicted throng of Providence Petrels started appearing as we passed the shelf break. The little wind had built in energy which fortunately worked in our favour. The offerings soon drew in a handful of Wilson's Storm-Petrels along with a Fairy Prion. A Cape Petrel also joined the mix of species working the drift. The bird fitted a NZ breeder, australe.
A Northern Giant-Petrel also came in to the drift giving everyone onboard good views. A lone Sooty Shearwater made a quick pass but showed the typical flight style, profile and underwing of the species.
After a little over an hour at the drift the wind lost energy and dropped to a standstill. The Albatross began bathing and preening. Interestingly a pair were seen allopreening. Not unusual in itself but the two were different species. An Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross and a Black-browed Albatross were deeply engaged for some time in interspecies allopreening. This was to be observed again later in the trip on the return leg. A 3rd cycle Campbell (impavida Black-browed) was actively allopreening an adult Black-browed Albatross (melanophris nominate).
A marlin was spotted which triggered the skipper to drop a line and trawl. As we were circling an all small dark Albatross was zigzagging gracefully towards us. It was immediately called by David as one of the sooties. The bird unfortunately didn't come to the boat however a few photographs were captured which clinched the identity. A LIGHT-MANTLED SOOTY ALBATROSS! The bird disappeared to the north east amongst a backdrop of rain. This the only the second record of this species off Sydney. The first being on a private charter in September 1999 with Steve Anyon-Smith and Tony Palliser at the helm.
Leaving the drift for the return leg proved to be just as exciting. With the throng of Albatross following us on the voyage back another Giant-Petrel appeared. It turned out to be a Southern. That was quickly followed up by an all white Giant-Petrel which could only mean one thing. A stunning white morph Southern Giant-Petrel. We stopped the boat. The bird landed alongside the dark juvenile right next to the boat.
Cetaceans included a number of Humpback whales seen mostly in closer to shore, a pod of Short-beaked common dolphins during the trip out and a pod of Common bottlenosed dolphins.
BIRD LIST
(Note that the numbers in parentheses represent the approximate maximum number of that species in view at one time)
| Silver Gull | 75 | (60) |
| Greater Crested Tern | 1 | (1) |
| Antipoden Albatross (Gibson's) | 1 | |
| Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross | 8 | (4) |
| Buller's Albatross | 10 | (7) |
| Shy Albatross | 9 | (6) |
| Black-browed Albatross | 21 | (17) |
| Campbell Albatross | 4 | (4) |
| LIGHT-MANTLED SOOTY ALBATROSS | 1 | |
| Wilson's Storm Petrel | 10 | (8) |
| Northern Giant Petrel | 2 | (1) |
| Southern Giant Petrel | 2 | (2) |
| Pintado Petrel | 2 | (1) |
| Providence Petrel | 22 | (18) |
| Fluttering-type Shearwaters | 6 | (2) |
| Fairy Prion | 1 | (1) |
| Australasian Gannet | 50 | (6) |
| Red-footed Booby | 1 | (1) |
OTHER
| Oceanic Bottlenose Dolphin | 20 |
| Common Dolphin | 35 |
| Humpback Whale | 7 |
| Minke sp. | 1 |
| Marlin | 1 |
Highlights
(Photographs Greg McLachlan).
Greg McLachlan
Greg McLachlan
Greg McLachlan
Greg McLachlan
Greg McLachlan
Greg McLachlan
Greg McLachlan
Greg McLachlan
Greg McLachlan
Greg McLachlan
Greg McLachlan
Greg McLachlan
Greg McLachlan