Posts from Naturaliste Charters
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Learning about the photo identification programs with Pia Markovic
There’s an iPhone feature that sorts photos using facial recognition, categorising frequently photographed faces into groups. Interestingly, it can work for Southern Right Whales too, albeit a little more haphazardly. “Basically, there are different ways of identifying all whales. And because Southern Rights have distinctive callosities (louse-covered callouses) on their...
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Hear the tales of Naturaliste history film maker, Dave Riggs
What life is hiding on the sea floor? Naturaliste history film maker and Naturaliste Charters tour guide, Dave Riggs, will soon find out. “I’m in the process of sourcing camera systems that will be capable of withstanding water depth to at least 800 metres,” Dave says. “And when I do...
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Recording the Behaviour of the Earth’s Largest Creature with Pia Markovic
When you ask Naturaliste Charters marine biologist Pia Markovic what she loves most about Blue Whales, there’s no wavering when she answers. “Blue Whales are the largest animal on the planet – bigger than dinosaurs,” she says. “And learning more and more about them every day is both thrilling and...
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Pelagic Birdwatching with Daniel Mantle and Plaxy Barratt
Seabird guides Daniel Mantle and Plaxy Barratt say there’s something extraordinary about observing birds while at sea. “Watching seabirds mastering the strong oceanic winds is just about the pinnacle of birding for both us,” Plaxy explains. “The spray, the wind, the rocking boat… it’s magic.” The two pelagic birdwatchers are...
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Tracking Orcas at the helm with Captain Dundee
As soon as Captain Andrew Johnstone (better known as Captain Dundee), a Naturaliste Charters skipper with a huge smile, starts talking, you realise that you’re in for a treat. “We know around 150 of the whales we see each season personally,” he says. “After seven years in the Bremer Canyon...
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Video: Whale Watching in Western Australia is back!
It's official! Naturaliste Charters are back out on the water and they're seeing plenty of Humpback Whales! The start of the whale watching season in Margaret River has begun, with local operator Naturaliste Charters already operating tours out of Augusta in south-eastern Western Australia. Check out recent footage here: Hear...
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Our Favourite Member Photographs: April 2020
Rainbow Lorikeet - Echidna Walkabout Nature Tours Image credit: Echidna Walkabout Nature Tours (via Facebook: @echidnawalkabout) Recommended tour: Great Ocean Road (3D/2N) Australian Sea-lions - Australian Coastal Safaris Image credit: Australian Coastal Safaris (via Facebook: @auscoastsafaris) Featured tour: Port Lincoln Wildlife Encounters (2D/2N) Common Wombat - The Maria Island Walk...
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Our Favourite Member Photographs: March 2020
Killer Whale - Naturaliste Charters Image credit: Naturaliste Charters (via Facebook: @bremercanyonkillerwhaleexpeditions) Recommended tour: Bremer Canyon Killer Whale Expedition Eastern Grey Kangaroos - Echidna Walkabout Nature Tours Image credit: Echidna Walkabout Nature Tours (via Facebook: @echidnawalkabout) Recommended tour: Great Ocean Road (3D/2N) Emus - Australian Coastal Safaris Image credit: Australian...
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Q&A With Guides: Pia Markovic
Bremer Canyon supports one of the most astonishing aggregations of marine life anywhere on the planet and Pia Markovic has a daily front row seat as Naturaliste Charter's marine biologist! We caught up with Pia recently to find out more about her role researching some of the world's most incredible...
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Our Favourite Member Photographs: February 2020
Kangaroo Island Kangaroo - Exceptional Kangaroo Island Image credit: Exceptional Kangaroo Island (via Facebook: @exceptionalkangarooisland) Exceptional Kangaroo Island came across a couple of local Kangaroo Islanders who seemed to be getting into the spirit of Valentine's Day! Recommended tour: Kangaroo Island In Style (2D/1N) Killer Whale - Naturaliste Charters Image...
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Our Favourite Member Photographs: November 2019
Life on the Reef - Exmouth Dive and Whalesharks Ningaloo Image credit: Exmouth Dive and Whalesharks Ningaloo (via Facebook: @exmouthdiveandwhalesharksningaloo) The Ningaloo Reef provides magical marine encounters throughout the year! Recommended tour: Deluxe Whaleshark Swim (full day) - available from March 4 until August 31, 2020. Figbird with Young -...
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Our Favourite Member Photographs: October 2019
Red-bellied Pademelons - The Maria Island Walk Image credit: The Maria Island Walk (via Facebook: @mariaislandwalk) Extinct on mainland Australia, these cute creatures are widespread in Tasmania and Maria Island! Recommended tour: The Maria Island Walk - available until April 30, 2020. Whale Shark - Exmouth Dive and Whalesharks Ningaloo...
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Tour Spotlight: Bremer Canyon Killer Whale Expedition
Naturaliste Charters operate full day Killer Whale expeditions out of Bremer Bay in Western Australia. From January to April each year, these expeditions take guests out to the edge of the continental shelf to the submarine 'Bremer Canyon', where they get the opportunity to encounter pods of wild Killer Whales....
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Our Favourite Member Photographs: September 2019
Rainbow Lorikeet - Australian Coastal Safaris Image credit: Australian Coastal Safaris (via Facebook: @auscoastsafaris) South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula region is home to a diverse range of birds, none more stunning than the Rainbow Lorikeet! Featured tour: Port Lincoln Wildlife Encounters (2D/2N) Common Wombat - The Maria Island Walk Image credit: ...
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Our Favourite Member Photographs: July 2019
Grey-headed Flying-fox - Echidna Walkabout Nature Tours Image credit: Echidna Walkabout Nature Tours (via Instagram: @echidnawalkabout_) The Grey-headed Flying-fox is one of many wildlife sightings available in the East Gippsland region of Victoria. Echidna Walkabout Nature Tours offer multiple tours which visit this region. Recommended tour: East Gippsland Wildlife Journey...
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Our Favourite Member Photographs: May 2019
Buffalo - Lords Safaris Image credit: Lords Safaris (via Facebook: @lordssafarisnt) Lords Safaris encountered some Buffalo out on the Mary River floodplain, north of Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory. These tours are conducted using airboats, which offer great access to a diverse range of wildlife including Saltwater Crocodiles,...
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Our Favourite Member Photographs: April 2019
Here are some amazing April images across the Australian Wildlife Journey group! Flinders Ranges Sunrise - Arkaba Conservancy Image credit: Brooke Saward (via Instagram: @worldwanderlust) The Flinders Ranges region of South Australia is famous for its stunning landscapes as well as it's wildlife diversity. As part of the Arkaba Walk...
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Our Favourite Member Photographs: February 2019
Take a look at some of our favourite posts from our members in February 2019: Orca - Naturaliste Charters Image credit: Michael Haluwana (via Instagram: @aeroture_aus) Naturaliste Charters get you face-to-face (literally!) with Orcas in the Bremer Canyon region of Western Australia! The season operates from January through to April,...
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Killer Whale Season Starts in Spectacular Fashion!
The 2019 Killer Whale season has officially commenced for the Naturaliste Charters team! The endless hours of preparing, the weeks of build-up and the hype for the season had the whole crew in knots as we made our way out of the harbour today. As we ventured toward the canyon...
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Naturaliste Charters & Boutique Wildlife Tours join AWJ
Australian Wildlife Journeys is pleased to announce that Naturaliste Charters from Western Australia’s southwest region and Boutique Wildlife Tours from the Southern Highlands, just south of Sydney, have joined the group. Since the collective launched in February 2017, the membership base has grown to 13 independently-owned wildlife operators across Australia....
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Australia's Great Humpback Whale Migration
Each January, around 60,000 Humpback Whales leave the frigid, food-rich waters of Antarctica and begin the world’s longest mammal migration, a 5,000 kilometre, three-month journey to the warm waters of northern Australia where they mate, calve and nurture their newborns. Around 25,000 of them diverge around Tasmania and head up...
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Four Incredible Places to Spot Baby Whales around Australia
As whale watching Australia goes, it doesn’t get much better than observing a mother interacting with her calf, particularly Humpback Whales, which are known as the showmen (and women!) of the whale world. From humpies to orcas, here are four incredible places to spot baby whales around Australia before they’re...