Some more from the Jan Cruise to the W Indies:

It was an interesting start to the journey with hurricane force winds in Biscay and a 14m swell. Part of an exceptional run of Atlantic storms that started in December and are still battering the SW of Britain now. Before they closed the decks off for a day or two, I managed to get out as we came round the Brest Peninsular where a Balearic Shearwater was nice to see; haven't seen one for ages you don't get many making it up the N Sea to Scotland. Also some close views of Bonxie.

This 1st W YL Gull was still following the ship in the mid Atlantic (as were 4 Kittiwake) when the nearest land was the Cape Verde Islands 800 miles to the South-west.  No doubt the occasional one of these makes it to the W Indies. Certainly LBB Gull looks to be establishing it's self as a regular winter visitor over that side of the Atlantic; we had a few in most of the harbours we visited in the Lesser Antilles.

It's not just Britain that's been getting an influx of white-wingers this winter. I had two Glaucs in the harbour at Ponta Del Guarda, Sao Miguel, Azores where up to 4 had been noted in January.

Having done this transatlantic route before in Nov/Dec 2012 I knew what to expect at sea; the mid Atlantic pretty quiet but with the potential for interest around Oceanic Islands that we stopped at on the way out(Madeira) and on the way back (Azores).  Flying fish kicked in when we were about 1,000 miles from the Caribbean. On the whole the offshore Caribbean waters were rather quiet although I did have cracking views of a Leachs Petrel feeding over the sea approx. 300 miles from Barbados. Cetaceans were thin on the ground the whole journey, probably due to a combination of  seasonal distribution (Azores are great but mainly in summer) and the frequent rough seas making observation difficult. We did go through a hot spot for Sperm Whale aprrox 1,500 miles East of Miami when we were still under the influence of warmer water. Large numbers of Common Dolphin were noted on the approach to the Azores.