Crowds of youngsters gasped with delight yesterday while they watched dolphins staging a natural marine exhibition in the waves off the Moray coast.
Children flocked to the Scottish Dolphin Centre, a few miles north of Fochabers at the mouth of the River Spey, to celebrate the area’s prodigious coastal wildlife.
The Really Wild Fest event featured regular shorewatch sessions where visitors gazed intently across the bay in the hope of spotting some of the region’s famed dolphin pods.
The centre’s manager, Alison Rose, was thrilled that the sea mammals put on a show during two of the sessions.
She said: “We had two groups of dolphins through the day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.
“The children and the visiting families who got to see them were really excited.”
The centre confirmed that hundreds of youngsters spent their bank holiday time off from school by attending the day-long event and taking part in a series of activities.
They competed in a 100ft race, designed to illustrate the full majesty of the blue whale.
Mrs Rose added: “Blue whales are the biggest creatures who have ever lived, and we wanted to help children understand their scale by racing along that 100ft.
“The blue whale is fascinating to children, they really capture their imagination.”
Conditions remained calm for much of the day, but sharp gusts threatened to topple some marquees when they reached their peak during the afternoon.
Moray charity Wild Things was on hand for the event, and helped organise a treasure hunt around the bay.
Staff at the Whale and Dolphin Centre also took visitors on tours of its Ice House, which boasted displays of huge whale bones recovered from the local area.
Last month, the WDC group at Spey appealed for volunteers to join its Shorewatch initiative, which asks wildlife enthusiasts to help conservationists track whale and dolphin activity by supplying information on sightings.
People interested in the scheme can contact the Spey Bay centre on 01343 829065, or e-mail shorewatch@whales.org.
