Wildlife· Inland Sea· Greece — Ionian, Saronic & Argolic

Inland Sea Dolphins (Kalamos-Meganisi waters)

38° 37.8′ N · 20° 51.0′ E · approximate

The waters between Meganisi, Kalamos and Kastos lie inside the Inner Ionian Sea Archipelago Natura 2000 site (GR2220003), where the Ionian Dolphin Project has followed common and bottlenose dolphins and Mediterranean monk seals for three decades.

Ionian IslandsSaronic Gulf & Argolic

Practical

Ionian Dolphin Project (Tethys Research Institute): the Inner Ionian Sea Archipelago covers 865 km2, mostly 50-250 m deep, with rocky coasts and seagrass shallows. Common dolphins here declined from about 150 to about 15 animals between 1995 and 2007, linked to overfishing; since 2008 only a few are still recorded, probably ranging over a wider area. Bottlenose dolphins are few but appear stable: about 120 individuals photo-identified, about a quarter of them strongly site-faithful. Striped dolphins are seen occasionally. A Simpson Travel guide (2016) says dolphins gather near the fish farms off the west coast of Kalamos. Watching guidelines from the project: do not approach closer than 100 m; within 300 m (the caution zone) move at no-wake speed, with no more than three vessels in the zone; approach parallel to and slightly behind the animals, never head-on or from directly behind; if they come to you, put the engine in neutral; never feed, touch or swim with them; leave slowly if their behaviour changes suddenly. Sightings can be reported to the project via its website. Cross-reference: the resident community of about 150 bottlenose dolphins in the Ambracian Gulf (entry 'Ambracian Gulf Dolphins' in the Paxos, Parga & Preveza subregion), where the project's volunteer field station is at Vonitsa. Coordinate is a central point between Meganisi and Kalamos (approx), not a fixed sighting spot.

Best for

Dolphin watching under way, by the rules

Season

Year-round; calm mornings are best for spotting

Nearby