While visiting my sister in St Ives, staying in a property overlooking Bamaluz Beach, I had the perfect vantage point for some unexpected wildlife spotting. The views across the beach and bay are stunning, and from the comfort of the house, I noticed three fins breaking the surface. A flash of white confirmed they were not ordinary dolphins, so I grabbed my camera to start filming.

It turned out to be a pod of Risso’s dolphins, a species I have previously only seen in Mounts Bay. Their pale colouring and distinctive rounded heads made them easy to identify as they moved steadily through the bay. The encounter was brief, but unforgettable, a rare sighting of these impressive marine mammals so close to shore.

Moments like this show how rich and varied Cornwall’s coastal wildlife can be. You never quite know what you will see when you look out to sea, and that unpredictability is part of the appeal. Seeing a pod of Risso’s dolphins in St Ives Bay was a real highlight, and a reminder of just how special this part of Cornwall is.