Happy World Dolphin Day!

Happy World Dolphin Day! 🐬🎉

Common Dolphins, Atlantic Ocean outside Lisbon, Portugal © Cattie Coyle Photography - All rights reserved — ^{Above: Common Dolphins in the Atlantic outside Lisbon, Portugal}

World Dolphin Day takes place on September 12 every year to celebrate these amazing animals, and also to raise awareness about the threats dolphins around the world face: pollution, habitat destruction, the impacts of climate change, bycatch, and more.

The more time I spend around these beautiful animals, the more they fascinate and impress me. Their incredible speed, agility, and coordination is mind-blowing.

Bottlenose Dolphin, Atlantic Ocean outside Lisbon, Portugal © Cattie Coyle Photography - All rights reserved

Common Dolphin, Atlantic Ocean outside Lisbon, Portugal © Cattie Coyle Photography - All rights reserved

Common Dolphin and seabirds, Atlantic Ocean outside Lisbon, Portugal © Cattie Coyle Photography - All rights reserved

I like them all of course, but the Common Dolphins are my favorite. To me, they’re the dogs of the dolphin world – adorable, curious, playful, and seem to be as interested in us humans as we are in them. 😀💙

Two dolphins and a shearwater - Fine art print by Cattie Coyle Photography - All rights reserved — ^{Above: Two Common Dolphins and a seabird in the Atlantic Ocean outside Lisbon, Portugal. This image is available as a print here → Two Dolphins & A Shearwater}

And from what I’ve seen, the bottlenose dolphins are like the cats of the dolphins. 🙂 Sometimes they want to check you out, other times, they’re like, “hm, humans, I don’t think so, see you later” and disappear. 😄

Bottlenose Dolphins, Atlantic Ocean outside Lisbon, Portugal © Cattie Coyle Photography - All rights reserved — ^{Above: Bottlenose Dolphins in the Atlantic outside Lisbon, Portugal}

All these images were photographed in Portugal, and I’m actually there as I’m writing this. I’ve been out on a few dolphin watching excursions already on this trip, and am hoping to go on several more. I have become completely addicted to it, and it’s one of my favorite things to do here!