whale & Dolphin watching.

Sri Lanka is situated within the International Whaling Commission's protected zone in the Indian Ocean. Of the 80 species of cetaceans observed and identified worldwide, 26 are found in the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal. Whale and dolphin watching is a seasonal activity in Sri Lanka, available on the west coast in locations from KALPITIYA and along the SOUTH WEST COAST from November to March while the east coast off TRINCOMALEE is preferable from June to September.

"The south coast of Sri Lanka is one of the very best places to see Blue Whales in the entire world. Most of these Blue Whales are on migration, en-route from their North East monsoon feeding grounds off Trincomalee to their South West monsoon feeding grounds in the Arabian Sea.

Sperm Whales are also present with pods. While most Blue Whales can be seen over the continental shelf, Sperm Whales tended to occur a bit further offshore, in the shipping lanes. And this gives a clue as to why there are so many whales here. A glance at any chart of the Indian Ocean shows that Dondra Head is the southern-most point not only of Sri Lanka, but also of the entire Indian subcontinent. Any ship wanting to pass between east and west has to pass by Dondra. Furthermore, off Dondra the continental slope comes to within less than 3 nautical miles of the coast. With the seasonally changing monsoon currents producing seasonally changing blooms of plankton; with the land masses of India and Sri Lanka acting like an inverted funnel to channel cetacean movements; and with deep water so close to shore, it is perhaps not surprising that the southern tip of Sri Lanka is such a cetacean hotspot." Dr. Charles Anderson - Professional marine biologist Other cetacean species can be seen: Bryde's Whale, Dwarf Sperm Whale, unidentified Beaked Whale, Spinner Dolphin, Striped Dolphin and Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin.