Calm seas and rolling fins

I went for a short walk at the end of the day.  The Pacific Ocean off Bodega Head hardly ever looks like this, especially in winter.  Calm seas and hardly any wind:

 

I watched for whales, without any luck.  But I noticed some small, dark shapes appearing every now and then and with my binoculars confirmed they were Harbor Porpoises (Phocoena phocoena).

The porpoises were pretty far out — I'd guess ~3/4 mile off the coast — but close enough to see well with binoculars.  I did my best to capture a few photos for the record.  

Often you'd just catch a glimpse of one individual — a small back, with a short, triangular dorsal fin breaking the surface and then rolling forward:

 

 

There were some small groups of at least 3-4 individuals.  Here are two together:

 

Some of the birds were attracted to the porpoise activity.  Here's one porpoise with a gull and several cormorants:

 

How many porpoise can you see in the next photo?  [Click on it for a larger version.]

 

 

(There are three porpoises, one on the far left and another two just right of center.)

I think I probably observed at least 15 porpoises over ~45 minutes.  Because of their small size and short fins, it's usually hard to spot porpoises among larger waves or windy seas.  But it's worth looking for them on days like this!