Yesterday was a bumper day for whale sightings, with Southern Right Whales spotted frolicking off Granite Island, Boomer Beach and Commodore Point at Port Elliot.

Some fantastic photos and videos of whales breaching and playing have been uploaded to the Southern Right Whale Conservation and Protection Group’s Facebook page.

One of the whales causing great excitement is Broderie, a two-time mum and return visitor to the Encounter Bay Nursery.

The Southern Right Whale Conservation and Protection group compared pictures of a recently arrived whale with those taken of Broderie during past visits and confirmed it is her.

She was first photographed in the area in 2013 with a calf and again in 2016 when she returned to give birth to another.

The group is hoping she will be spotted with a calf again this year.

The whales are visiting at the same time that the new Granite Island causeway is being constructed and it is hoped that a study can be funded to examine the impact of the generated underwater noise on whales and their calves.

Whale and Dolphin Conservation Australasia are helping to facilitate the funding for citizen science group Encounter Bay Right Whale study and collaborators from Curtin and Flinders Universities. 

They have also established a Go Fund Me page to take donations to help fund the study.

They say the underwater noise from the Granite Island causeway is likely to impact the behaviour of whales and that there is only a short window of time to study and document observations.