Although we looked for Storm Petrels for 2 days, we had no sighting of any storm-petrel species... Spring was weird as we hardly had sightings of Wilson's and European storm petrels and they used to be common on our pelagics... White-faced storm petrel was common but for the last 4 years it has been scarce and, Madeiran Storm petrel decided to be tricky with us this year! But we had very good sightings of the seabird species described below and, of course, big numbers of Bulwer's Petrel Bulweria bulwerii and Cory's shearwater Calonectris borealis everyday.

23rd June 2022 - NNE wind between 8 and 12 knots. NE waves up to 0.5 meters but very short period
5 Desertas Petrel Pterodroma deserta - 4 on the way up
3 Manx shearwater Puffinus puffinus puffinus
2 Common tern Sterna hirundo
Parasitic Jaeger Stercorarius parasiticus
Zino's Petrel Pterodroma madeira
2 Pterodroma sp.
Great shearwater Puffinus gravis
2 Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis

Sperm whale Physeter macrocephalus
Atlantic Spotted dolphins Stenella frontalis
Blue shark Prionace glauca

The ocean started rough and ended up flat but storm-petrels only showed when it was flat and late in the evening... Cory's shearwater Calonectris borealis and Bulwer's Petrel Bulweria bulwerii and Manx shearwater Puffinus puffinus puffinus were the species entertaining us during the long wait.

18th June 2022 - North wind between 9 and 3 knots, waves 0.5 meters from same direction
3 Fea's Petrel Pterodroma feae/deserta - 1 on the way up
4 Pterodroma sp.
2 Madeiran storm petrel Oceanodroma castro - both at 9:20 pm
Lesser Black-backed gull Larus fuscus
5 Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis

Atlantic Spotted dolphins Stenella frontalis

The first two days were a bit rough on our bodies but with rich observations while the third day was a slow day for new species though with thousands of Bulwer's Petrel Bulweria bulwerii, dozens of Cory's shearwater Calonectris borealis and a few Manx shearwater Puffinus puffinus puffinus.

13th June 2022 - NE wind started with 6 knots and went down to zero. 1.5 meter northern swell which flattened during the afternoon
Fea's Petrel Pterodroma feae/deserta - on the way to the chumming position
Pterodroma sp.
2 Lesser Black-backed gull Larus fuscus graellsii
9 Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis
2 Common tern Sterna hirundo

Short-finned Pilot whale Globicephala macrorhynchus
Atlantic Spotted dolphins Stenella frontalis
Loggerhead Turtle Caretta caretta
Sea pickle Pyrosoma atlanticum - a free-floating cylindrical colony of thousands of tiny marine invertebrates.

The wind conditions were good for the 3 days pelagic but the number of seabirds around were not as much as we are used to... Anyway, we got to see all the aimed species, including the White-faced Storm Petrel! Cory's shearwater Calonectris borealis and Bulwer's Petrel Bulweria bulwerii and Manx shearwater Puffinus puffinus puffinus were watched everyday!

7th June 2022 - Northern wind between 8 and 10 knots. Waves from NE up to 1.5 meters
2 Fea's Petrel Pterodroma feae/deserta- 1 on the way up
4 Pterodroma sp. - too far to ID
2 Pomarine Skua Stercorarius pomarinus - 1 on the way up
White-faced Storm Petrel Pelagodroma marina hypoleuca - fed on the chum slick for a while!
Madeiran storm petrel Oceanodroma castro
6 Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis

Portuguese man-of-war Physalia physalis

June is a transition month between Spring and Summer and usually Madeira is a stop over for some birds in migration...

28th of June 2022 off Machico
Peregrine falcon Falco peregrinus

23rd of June 2022 at Caniçal - reported by Simon (UK)
2 Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus

12th of June 2022 at Funchal - sightings by a group of birdwatchers (UK)
Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus
Purple Heron Ardea purpurea

This pelagic started with strong westerly wind and rough ocean and ended up with very light wind but still quite choppy... As usual, Cory's shearwater Calonectris borealis, Bulwer's Petrel Bulweria bulwerii and Manx shearwater Puffinus puffinus puffinus were watched everyday.

3rd June 2022 - 9 knots NNE wind dropping down to 1 knot by 7:00pm. 0.6 meter waves from same direction
Zino's Petrel Pterodroma madeira
Wilson's storm-petrel Oceanites oceanicus
8 Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis