Marine Bird Species in Tenerife

What Marine and Coastal Bird Species are in Tenerife?

Calonectris borealis
Cory’s Shearwater

The Cory’s Shearwater is a seasonal visitor to Tenerife and between spring and early fall it is the most commonly seen marine bird species seen on our whale watching tours. They migrate to the Canary Islands to reproduce and raise their chicks. Their offspring are typically ready to leave the nest in late September.

Cory’s Shearwaters are true oceanic birds where they eat mostly fish, often diving underwater to hunt fish. They can hold their breath for over a minute and dive up to 15 meters deep! We often see them following several species of hunting dolphins as the dolphins drive fish towards the surface making the Shearwaters own hunting efforts more effective.

Larus michahellis
Yellow Legged Gull

The Yellow Legged gull is a large marine bird that resides in Tenerife and is the second most common species of bird seen on our whale and dolphin watching tours. They nest in colonies along the cliffs of Costa Adeje and spend the day hunting for fish often alongside pods of dolphins.

Yellow legged gulls are unique to the eastern Atlantic Ocean. They are a large gull reaching a wingspan of 150cm and up to 1.6 kilograms in weight. There is a bright red ring around the eye and on adults a red spot on the bill. They often are seen attacking smaller species of birds to steal their meals. Omnivorous, they are known to ingest plastics and other marine debris causing mortality in this large gull species.

Pilot Whales

Bottlenose Dolphins

Atlantic Spotted Dolphins

Bryde’s Whales

Common Dolphins

Sperm Whales

Fin Whales

Blainville’s Beaked Whales

Rough Toothed Dolphins

Sea Turtles

Marine Bird Species

Atlantic Silver Hatchetfish

False Killer Whales

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We specialise in Tenerife whale and dolphin watching tours – we are a Tenerife Blue Flag Certified Whale Watching Organisation. From our custom built whale watching boat to our dedicated staff of Biologists Whale Watch Tenerife offers the most complete, thrilling and respectful tours to observe the whales and dolphins along Costa Adeje. We offer year round whale watching trips from the Puerto Colón Marina, Tenerife.