E-mails
as received descending
Wild dolphins in Red Sea Dear Wade! I want
to share the experience I had several days ago. We were diving near from the beach, cleaning the shore from all kind of a
garbage that people like to throw in the water. After like 30 mins I begun
to hear some light clicks, just like the dolphins' echo-location and
thought: "I've got some hallucinations here". And then I saw a pair of
dolphins approaching, wild ones! One (male) is spotted (according to the
number of spots - very adult), and his girl-friend, it seems, bottlenose
(was too big for a young - spot-less spotted, and the face was the one of a
bottlenose, not spotted, too). The male was swimming close, while the female
was either with him, or swimming around, a bit aside
(I felt that she didn't trust people). Then the male just laid down at the
sandy bottom, on his side-back, and stayed like that for several minutes. It
looked like he was copying us, or presenting himself. I've moved closer and
slowly stroked his side. He just looked back at me and closed his eye. Then
in like half-a-minute he moved on, carefully not to hit me with his flukes
(I was right above them, so he did a few short waves first).
Then people from the beach saw the dolphins and tried to get close, touch,
grab and all that stuff people usually want to do to dolphins when see them.
Male's attitude has changed completely! He became very aggressive, even did
a jaw-clap at one of the reaching hands. Also he took the standard
"threatening pose" against that person, who luckily understood the
jaw-clapping threat and has retired before it escalated. Other people also
got out, and the dolphins have calmed down and begun their normal swim-arounds,
looking at what we were doing. I could feel that the dolphins do not trust
people from the beach, but do trust the divers. At least the spotted one it
seems did meet some of them before. And then the dolphins have left. Male
was touching the female's back behind her dorsal with his flipper, as they
were swimming away. I saw he was specially reaching for her, not just an
occasional touch.
It feels so much different to be approached by really wild dolphins! And
these were the very first wild dolphins that I saw, too (and the first
spotted one for me, as well).
Best wishes, Alexander.
Dear Alexander: that is superb! Reminds me a little of a scene I once
witnessed where a bottlenose lay on the bottom in the shallows while another gently probed its side with its rostrum. Perhaps high
frequency sound stimulation was going on..In the Bahamas[Lily Banks] spotteds and bottlenose hybridise. There is also
quite a lot of conflict. Bottlenose look battered. Their numbers are much smaller.
So good to hear from you and know you are OK. Wade
Towards an Etiquette for Meeting Solitary,
Sociable Dolphins
Wade Doak Project Interlock Box 20 Whangarei New Zealand
wade@igrin.co.nz
Preamble as a writer who has made a special effort to study solitary
dolphins that seek human society* I am very mindful that the history of solo
dolphins has only just begun to be recorded. Nor has the history ended.
There will be further episodes around the world’s coasts, of lone dolphins
seeking human company. Perhaps even as I write... I hope that we will become
increasingly sensitive to their needs and better able to manage ourselves in
their presence.
From a study of solitary dolphin episodes it will be obvious that the most
complex interactions happen with people who have treated the dolphin
thoughtfully and creatively and in situations where they have been careful
not to crowd out our own species but openly and generously shared the
dolphin with others. Many have learnt that it is just as wonderful to watch
an interaction as to participate.
All present are involved in a special moment. Spectators often contribute
immensely by telling those engaged with the dolphin of things beyond their
vision. With each episode an appropriate interspecies etiquette is evolving.
In future situations I hope that people will be more aware of the needs of
these lonely, sapient creatures and that we can offer the world at large a
model for the future. I see the need to prepare a management plan for
solitary dolphin situations: procedures for managing our side of the
exchange, not the dolphin’s ! With future solitary dolphins episodes I hope
that we may be better prepared. I would urge that we refrain from naming the
dolphin, until its sex is known. Meanwhile, a dolphin protection group
should be formed, calling on the assistance, cooperation and advice of all
local sea user groups and the support of the lapproriate local authorities.
It is essential to avoid alienating fishermen when seeking to protect a solo
dolphin from nets etc., but to consult them en masse as professional groups
and sporting organisations - such bodies would never wish to harm a dolphin,
despite the negative attitudes of a few individuals. Perhaps a name might be
chosen by popular consensus, taking special care to consult indigenous
people where appropriate.
With Fanny in Marseille, her guardians staged a special christening ceremony
with the media and local dignitaries visiting the dolphin in several boats.
In this way the dolphin received valuable public recognition and enhanced
protection. She was able to live for seven years in a busy port system.
Solitary dolphin episodes have not always been happy events for humans.
Rivalries and jealousies often develop. People have come to blows.
Quite naturally individual humans often form a relationship with a solo
dolphin in isolation from other people and come to think of it as their own
- as if it were a pet. They may feel it is their duty to protect the dolphin
from the public and deeply resent the actions of others, which they
interpret as contrary to the dolphin’s welfare. Unless such situations can
be resolved, conflict has often developed to the point where the dolphin is
at the centre of a major dispute - a sad reflection on human inadequacies.
For the dolphin, there is often a lack of consistency in the human responses
it meets: people learn but do not transmit, so that the dolphin has to give
repeat lessons. Were people to form a communicating group and learn from
each other’s experiences, a solo dolphin might find its ongoing situation
much more pleasant and creative, increasing its survival prospects.
Management of a Solitary, Sociable Dolphin
Situation by Wade Doak, Project Interlock. based on conclusions from the
global history of solitary, sociable dolphins* The history, assembled by
Project Interlock presented cases in which dolphins, apart from their social
groups, have lived in close proximity to humans. In many cases the
relationship with humans has persisted for many years. In three cases, more
than a decade. In seven cases, the dolphin was killed by human agency.
Several solitary dolphins may have died because of human mismanagement,
iincluding two cases in New Zealand, where oil spillage or submarine
explosion may have been involved. Of the others, in two cases, bodies were
found but cause of death could not be established. The rest just vanished.
In only one case has it ever been established that a long term solitary
sociable dolphin has rejoined a social group of its own kind. Several
females , while living solitary, have become pregnant and some mingling has
been observed by males. From an analysis of the cases on record, it seems
clear that the solitary situation is for the most part, permanent and that
association with humans is important to the animal for tactile stimulation
and social interaction. Past Management Approaches For the most part the
only formal management of solitary, sociable dolphin situations has been
special protection status accorded to them by law. With Pelorous Jack, Opo
and Nina special laws were passed by Parliament to accord them protection.
These days most countries have an equivalent to our Marine Mammals
Protection Act. In a number of cases, the local community has erected notice
boards and distributed pamphlets advising how the dolphin should be treated.
In the case of Jojo (Bahamas); Fanny and Dolphy (France), special guardians
were appointed by local institutions, to oversee the welfare of the dolphin
and ensure that it is not maltreated by the public. At Monkey Mia in Western
Australia, a very special situation existed where several dolphins visited
the beach and accepted fish gifts from the public. Because such an
accessible situation has produced an immense public response (up do 800
visitors in a weekend) two full time rangers were appointed and they
supervise and restricted feeding. No swimming with the dolphins was
permitted and no play objects (balls etc.) were permitted. Dogs were banned.
At a special centre on the beach, educational videos, pamphlets and advice
were made available. This restrictive developed because of the huge volume
of tourism that effected reciprocally a major growth of tourist facilities
and global publicity. With Dolphy at Colioure in South France, the guardian
took special measures* to prevent people holding her dorsal fin for rides,
because he is convinced her fin was suffering physical damage from such
attention. With both Dolphy and Fanny near Marseille, the guardians were
supervised by Professor Henri Augier, of the University at Marseille and in
conjunction, in each case, with a local “friends of the dolphin” committee.
In the case of Dolphy, who created an intensive situation reminiscent of the
beach encounters of Opo, the local Mayor closely supervised and supported
the guardian who was equipped with a cellphone and instant police backup.
Interestingly the dolphin’s rest area was beneath a cerain boat alongside a
jetty right under the noses of the questing public and beside her guardian.
The dolphin learnt to breathe surreptitiously and undetected. Jojo in the
Bahamas has long been closely managed by a guardian. A major problem there,
for a time, was this male dolphin’s aggressive sexual behaviours towards
female tourists at the local Club Mediterranean. Humans females
unintentionally provoke dolphin sexuality by stroking. Human menstruality is
also provocative for male dolphins In two cases there has been some
controversy over the role of guardians who have been criticised by the
public for becoming too possessive; over - solicitous and for demonstrating
their own interaction with the dolphin to the public in the manner of a
trainer at a dolphinarium. The problem of protecting a dolphin which is
easily accessible to the public in a beach situation, where no boats are
needed, is extremely demanding and open to contention. Perhaps dolphin
guardians would benefit from the close support and supervision of a broadly
based committee and some sound advice. Zero Three, in Australia was managed
informally for five years in a unique manner: all involved with the dolphin
kept the situation a secret, while formal academic observations were
maintained weekly along with playful human / dolphin interaction, in the
midst of a major Australian city. In the case of Fungie in Ireland, there is
no formal management . A fleet small boats take the public to meet the
dolphin, which has, in one year, generated over one million pounds in
tourist income for the community. This situation is one of the longest on
record. This mature male dolphin has become very selective about permitting
physical contact, allowing it with only those with whom it has established
trust. For the most part it will only approach tourists when they visit en
masse provided they are holding a tow-line. If they release it and swim
towards the dolphin, Fungie leaves. But he has close, intimate sessions at
special times with a circle of long term human friends. Fungie is a rare
case of a male solo dolphin that does not behave sexually towards humans,
although he has been seen copulating with visiting dolphins. Sexual
aggression can become a problem with solitary male dolphins and to a lesser
extent, with females. Joca in Montenegro physically assaulted women swimmers
who intervened when she was interacting with special male human friends. In
one case a mask was smashed and nose broken This could become a problem as a
female matures sexually and enters estrous.
An example: the “Maui” Situation in New Zealand (a female Tursiops ) ** for
details. During the period in which Maui was interacting with the public,
she made several major changes in her activity patterns and range of
movement. [1] The Motonau period.
[2]The Kaikoura Peninsula period.
[3] The Goose Bay period, when she avoided Kaikoura Peninsula.
[4] The return to Kaikoura Peninsula and ranging further north
[5] The Marlborough Sounds period and pregnancy/birth.
Conclusions: Activity and home range are subject to change and in some cases
this can be expected to continue to alter whereas Fungie and Jean-Louis (a
female Tursiops ) were/ have been extremely static in their activity and
home range over a long term.
Other solitary sociable dolphins have ranged widely: Donald set up a series
of home bases at small harbours along the Welsh and Cornish coast over a
seven year period. Fanny moved her home base several times in the port
environs of Marseille; Dolphy ranged widely along the Mediterranean coast
from Spain to France; Jojo in the Bahamas ranges widely and often mixes with
dolphins in social groups, etc. Many factors could interplay to cause a
dolphin to shift base: variations in food supply; fear of orca or shark
predation; seasonal changes in access to human interaction etc.
Final Conclusion: it should not be assumed that any current situation is a
sound basis for planning. Management Options
[1] Laissez faire approach: leave dolphin alone, in the hope that it will
not become involved with humans and will return to own society. [unlikey-
see above]
[2] Appoint a guardian to supervise the situation. Devise a set of
guidelines and rules to ensure dolphin welfare which the guardian would
implement.
[3] Set up a committee to supervise and regulate the situation, with
appropriate notice boards, pamphlets and public education as to appropriate
etiquette, perhaps incorporating guardianship.
Matters for Consideration
[1] Buoyed areas for interaction, as outlined earlier.
[2] “No go” area for the dolphin’s rest periods, if deemed necessary.
[3] Restriction on the number of swimmers that can approach -or total
prohibition . This may provoke the dolphin to violent behaviour and greater
wandering.
[4] Restriction on the number of boats that can approach h.
[5] Restriction of the types of boats that may take the public to visit .
[6] Dolphin etiquette: areas of itsbody that are “no touch” zones.
[7] Ban on offering the dolphin food gifts.
Discussion of the Above
[1] This may be practicable in situations that may arise, where home range
is limited. In more plastic, wide-ranging situations, it may be irrelevant.
[2] Observation of the dolphin’s behaviour is needed, along with an
understanding of how to recognise its resting behaviour: a pattern of
regular breathing along with circling a buoy on the surface, a certain
moored boat or a favorite reef or regular patterned submergences. To many
people a resting dolphin would seem quite active and ‘normal’. Rest periods
can be intermittent and occasioned by factors such as the tide rather than
at a regular time each day. In the case of Jean-Louis, who was usually wary
of body contact and managed to survive intensive public attention ( divers,
swimmers, kayakists ) for ten years, she had an adjacent refuge area: a
rocky reef where she could elude persistent swimmers in turbulent white
water, returning later to the rocky cove where she interacted with people.
[3] If too many swimmers approach a solitary dolphin it may become
frustrated by the “cocktail party” effect: relationships are interrupted
just as they are developing: play routines; trust bonds; delicate reciprocal
understandings. There have been many cases overseas where the dolphin has
shown frustration and even aggressiveness in such circumstances. People
should realise that it is just as delightful to be a spectator of wild
dolphin / human relationships as to participate. In this case more creative
and complex developments will be observed in a 1:1 situation. With a maximum
of four people in the water, the dolphin will usually interact with only one
person at a time, but not feel over-pressed.
[4] Similarly, a better situation will arise with only one boat present. The
more boat traffic the more the dolphin becomes distracted, rushing from
propeller to propeller to enjoy the tactile stimulation of prop. wash or the
challenge of a bow ride at speed. It would be ideal to limit boat numbers,
if and where practicable. However, it needs to be borne firmly in mind that
managing a human / dolphin situation is an exercise in diplomacy: if rules
and regulations are not compatible with the needs of other sea-users,
resentments could be aroused that could endanger the dolphin. It is most
important to consult all sea users and seek their advice, involving them in
the decisionmaking.(No management at all would be better than a bullet
riddled carcass...)
[5] For commercial purposes, jet-propelled boats would be ideal, providing
safety for both dolphin and public while giving the dolphin the maximum in
tactile stimulus.
[6] Dolphin etiquette and “no touch” zones: a survey of the pamphlets
collected from other solo dolphin situations provides a consensus as to what
has been developed elsewhere. It is generally agreed that the blow hole and
eyes and genital zones should be avoided. It may be considered worthwhile to
avoid fin tows, but then again, this may not be a problem in the off-beach
encounter situation such as with Maui where the dolphin had adequate
control. When freely swimming she could readily dislodge an unwelcome fin
tow and avoid grasping hands. She seemed to enjoy the fin-tow game and it
may have been no problem if not excessive. { In the latter stage of this
episode Maui approached swimmers aggressively and repelled them.] Decisions
such as this need careful consideration and review by an on-the-spot
committee, along with advice from an experienced source. It is universally
agreed that it is not wise to proffer food to a solo dolphin for several
reasons: there are ecological implications, dangers of malevolent poisoning;
inappropriate food items, dependance etc. Medical Assistance For those who
may counsel a laissez - faire or “hands off” approach it should be realised
that in many solo dolphin cases, it has been necessary for humans to render
medical assistance: to remove fish hooks and entanglements; to administer
antibiotics following injury; to rescue from stranding etc. In such
situations it has been the trust and acceptance of human touch that has made
it possible to render assistance. A solitary dolphin has only human agency
to count on in a crisis. To deny this cannot be in its best interest.
- Detailed accounts in the books:
*Encounters with Whales & Dolphins, Wade Doak, Hodder & Stoughton Ltd, l988.
**Friends in the Sea, Wade Doak, Hodder & Stoughton Ltd, 1995. Titles out of
print but available on disc per www. wadedoak. com
- Further academic description: The Bottlenose Dolphin, edited by Stephen
Leatherwood - Academic Press, N. Y. l990.-Chapter 18.
- Christina Lockyer: Review of Incidents Involving Wild, Sociable Dolphins,
Worldwide.
Supplementary Management Suggestions for Boat Owners
[1] Several solo dolphins have been propeller addicts: for them it probably
provides the tactile stimulation [jaccuzzi style] they lack as solitary but
highly sociable mammals. While boat owners can do little to prevent them
following closely behind their stern, they should be made aware that
dolphins are not infallible and can injure themselves on propellers- in some
cases fatally. Accordingly, boat owners should avoid any sudden changes in
speed or direction while a dolphin is close to their propeller. They may
also hovers close to the propellers of stationary boats and rub on the
rudder.
[2] Owners of all vessels should be aware that a dolphin could be fatally
affected by any release of fuel oil or diesel, oily bilge water etc. The
dolphin’s blowhole operates at the very surface of the sea. Inhalation of
oily substances can produce an irreversible and terminal deterioration of
the lungs.
[3] Conflicts can arise between boat owners for the attention of a solo
dolphin. In situations where it is involved with people in the water
adjacent to an anchored boat any passing vessel can usually entice it to
pursue which may be seen as effectively “stealing” it. Such conflicts at
peak holiday periods could endanger the dolphin and in past solo dolphin
situations have led to confused, erratic behaviour and ill-health arising
from stress. Boat owners should be urged to act judiciously and with good
manners: where people are engaged with a solo dolphin in the water, rather
than entice it away, other boats could at least approach quietly and drop
anchor so their occupants can observe the interaction from a reasonable
distance and watch the in-water proceedings for half an hour before entering
the water*. At which point, if the numbers around the dolphin exceed four,
it would be good manners for the earlier group to withdraw from the water
and observe, perhaps having another turn later if the games persist. In
sensibly resolving potential human conflict with etiquette, boat owners can
avoid causing stress to the solo dolphin which few people would
intentionally wish to inflict on it. [* Especially relevant to the potential
buoyed off encounter area proposal.]
FOUR SOLO DOLPHINS IN EUROPE IN STRIFE
From: Gauthier Chapelle <G.Chapelle@aironair.com Date: Tue, 1 Jul 2003
18:21:43 +0200 To: "'Wade Doak'" <wade@igrin.co.nz Subject: Dony et al...
Dear Wade,
it seems that with the beginning of the holidays, the pressure might be
building up on our European solitary dolphins...
You've heard about Jean-Floch, beaten by some drunk fishermen. In good
health though, but less enthusiastic about coming to the little harbour he
used to cherish, he's only in it seems on the early morning and evening.
Dony [Georges, or Randy] is further South in Britanny, but had at least one
day where he got very sexual, and kicked out of the water a number of people
he found were not supposed to interfere. Fortunately without harming
anybody...
So for these two, together with "Reseau-Cetaces", we are preparing a notice
about how to handle such a presence to the local authorities, and I remember
you did participate in such a warning for Maui in Kaikoura. Would you still
have that text ?
To finish on the subject, Dusty in Ireland has broken two or three ribs of
an overly assertive lady... Aie aie aie
Take care all of you
Gauthier
Dony /Randy /Georges is Going
North !
Solo dolphin's Incredible Odyssey: Ireland, UK, France, Belgium, Holland...
Since at least yesterday afternoon (thus friday), Dony is in Holland (as
stated in "Het Laatste Nieeuws" from this morning, a Belgian newspaper) !
After coming out of the Rhine-Scheldt junction (a canal) in the Grevelingen,
he swam further North-East to enter a little harbour: Dinteloord. Yvon
Godefroid, Ute Margreff and me came just in time to see him from a distance
this afternoon (saturday), and then he vanished. This was in a cold and very
unclear water, nearly fresh, and close to the freezing point (there were
pieces of ice in it).
He's now probably back in the main Grevelingen, which means that at least
two sea locks separate him from the open sea... He will probably be
difficult to locate tomorrow (no newspapers), but as he obviously keeps his
will of moving, have a look on the Dutch web sites (dolfijn in Dutch).
Gauthier Chapelle
Solo Dolphin Odyssey
Gauthier Chapelle Belgium
Re Randy George etc
"I finally made contact with Jeremy Kiszka, from the North of France, who
confirmed to me that Dony/Randy/Georges the traveller, presumed deaf but not
deaf, was in the harbour of Boulogne, 2 h and a half driving from
Brussels... So I hesitated to go on Sunday, being on my own with the kids,
but first decided to call Ute Margreff, this German lady following Dusty who
first met Dony/Georges during several weeks when he first appeared in
Ireland in July
2001. Thinking she was in Ireland, I finally got her in her German home...
And we decided to get there together on the next day. It gave me the
opportunity to watch how he greeted her after one year and a half and 2000
km of travelling. It was really fantastic to witness, a very powerful
moment... He could not leave her for more than 5m and 3 seconds, and was
really keeping her in the water, she came out exhausted...
Of course, I videoed and took pictures, I'll send you some if you want. The
whole thing happened in one small basin of Boulogne harbour, which is closed
by a sea lock. However, this sea lock is opened every day when boats come in
and out, and a boat driver explained us that for the last week, Dony kept
going in and out following the boats. Ute has made a thorough checking of
his condition which looks optimal, beside two very small woundings. I'll try
to write a small report ASAP... Cheers Gauthier
To give you also the follow up of the incredible Odyssey of Dony/Georges/Randy,
which has already moved, and this time, he is in Belgium ! To my knowledge,
this is a definite record breaker, with already 4 countries visited, and I
bet 5 will be for next month... It is also the first ambassador in Belgium !
More exactly he is in de Delwaidedok, a basin of the Antwerpen harbour, one
of Europe's biggest. I haven't been myself yet, as I only got this news
yesterday evening, and it took me this morning to check it was Dony. I first
got Eddy Delpierre, one chap we met in Boulogne last week, explainig that
the fire brigade in Boulogne did take him back to the sea on Friday (I'm not
sure if they just showed him the way or took him on a boat, I'll check it).
This morning I also talked to the journalist who is in charge at the "Gazet
van Antwerpen", he confirmed me that the dolphin has a big scar on his
dorsal fin. The "maritime police" has tried to show him the way to the
river, but he quickly came back in the main basin, that was yesterday
evening, so I guess he is still there... I bet for Holland for the next move
! Otherwise he looks in good health (according to someone from Antwerpen zoo
which came to feed him and check his health).
I'll keep you informed, but this dolphin is really amazing ! [ Gauthier has
also been meeting Dusty solo in Ireland.]
Red Sea Dolphin Reef
Problems with former aquarium captives kept in semi confinement in sea.
Dear Wade,
I was at the Dolphin Reef, and have some news, good and bad . The good news
is that no dolphins were transferred anywhere; there are 12 dolphins at the
Dolphin Reef right now, just as there were before. Shy, the mother of the
lost Nemesh, feels good now, too (and she was really bad since it's
happened).
The bad news is that Dolphin Reef was forced to close their gates by the
Environment Protection organization of Israel. For how long - they don't
know. They also believe that the previous problems with the dolphins being
harsh to the swimmers around was related to the death of Nemesh and his
mother's bad state because of it. They hope that since Shy seems to have got
over her loss, there will be an improvement soon, and the gates will be open
again. My hopes are with it, too.
Alexander Sheremet.
STROPPY
DOLPINS IN UK
Nigel Smallbones, who heads the Dolphin Awareness Project, based at Paignton,
Devon, England is concerned that interactions between dolphins and
boats/swimmers are becoming more frequent in many coastal areas and the
Torbay area (of which Paignton forms part) is no exception, being crowded
with tourists, particularly during the busy summer months.
Recent incidents have involved bottlenose dolphins grabbing boat fenders and
barging their bodies against the sides of the boat, to persuade it to move
(presumably so that they can then bowride), and there is also the case of a
solitary, sociable male bottlenose dolphin who resided off south-west
England between March-September this year. This dolphin actively solicited
close encounters with swimmers and boats, which, on several occasions,
resulted in actual physical injury to both dolphin and swimmers.
In instances such as these, where such interactions may be perceived as
"negative", it is important to try to establish the intent of the dolphin(s)
and/or the people involved, when trying to assess whether an offence took
place under UK law relating to harassment/disturbance of marine mammals by
members of the public. In other words, is it the dolphin who is soliciting
the encounters, or is the dolphin being harassed by the public?
I think we are all aware of just how difficult it is to get the necessary
proof of disturbance, but do any list members know of any scientific papers
dealing with cetacean "harassment" of boats/swimmers, and/or have any
helpful suggestions, personal experience, etc, which they would be willing
to share? Any advice would be much appreciated. Please address your emails
to Nigel Smallbones at coastalzone@countryside-trust.org.uk Many thanks
Vanessa Williams WDCS Conservation Manager
Wade's Comment: I have collected accounts of human/cetacean encounters since
1977 and published many of them in the 4 books listed on this site. For the
most part any harassment of humans by cetaceans has been in a context that
is understandable, such as human encroachment on courtship of whales. I have
a verbal account of a bottlenose dolphin smashing up a towed dinghy.
Solitary, sociable dolphins, which often experience extreme pressure from
humans, have made many negative approaches , sometimes resulting in minor
injury, and once ,in death-but the circumstances were complex and involved
provocation by an enebriated man who probably drowned[Brazil]. I have
written about the ethics of cetacean encounter which are basically an
extension of the Golden Rule to another species.
Are there any further comments?
AGGRESSIVE RED SEA DOLPHINS
[FORMERLY CAPTIVES EX BLACK SEA AQUARIA- Wade]from Simon Nemtzov" <simon.nemtzov@nature-parks.org.il
Shalom to you all,
In the past few weeks, there were a few aggressive acts of dolphins against
swimmers in Eilat that reached the press and the authorities. The phenomena
of this aggressive spread out & during this time the issue of attacks became
a public problem that no one can shut it up anymore .... Now the problem is
out in front of every bodies eyes.
I think that now is the time to think together, to get involved in this
"dolphin open sea policy" & make IMMRAC's official spokesman answer.
Yesterday, I already talked to DUDU ZAKAI - the Marine biologist of the IL
Nature and Parks Authority in Eilat, & un formally offered him that IMMRAC
will be ready to come to Eilat for a week ASAP & make a survey for dolphin's
photo ID with IMMRAC boat & equipment, so that in a weeks time I hope that
IMMRAC will be able to figure out who are those animals that live in "Eilat's
home range". This can be a good starting point to identified some of the
aspects in the problem.
Let me know what you all think about it ASAP.
All the best, Simon Nemtzov" <simon.nemtzov@nature-parks.org.il
Dear Colleague:
We have had a few incidents recently of aggressive bottlenose dolphins
injuring people swimming in the waters of Eilat in Israel's areas of Gulf of
Eilat (Red Sea). So far none of the injuries has been what I would call
major (painful bruises, but no broken bones). It is not entirely clear if
there is more than one aggressive individual involved. Also, it is not
entirely clear if we are dealing with wild bottlenose dolphins, or some of
the bottlenose dolphins that live in the "Dolphin Reef" swim-with-dolphins
facility in Eilat that are currently allowed to exit freely to the sea from
the enclosure.
We are concerned that continuation of these kind of human-dolphin
interactions could lead to harm to the dolphins. Obviously there is also
real risk that a person could be seriously injured, and that is what could
create more problems eventually for the dolphins. As the person in charge of
dealing with human-wildlife conflict in Israel I have been asked to seek
solutions to the problem, and I am writing to you for ideas. I want to know
if you have any concrete suggestions for useful ways to keep dolphins away
from the beaches and/or swimmers. The obvious ones which we know about are
things like: Keep the "Dolphin Reef" facility closed tight to make sure that
their dolphins are not the ones involved in these attacks. Educate the
public at the beaches not to feed or promote interactions with dolphins.
Collect data to see if these are perhaps juvenile or solitary dolphins.
I am thinking more in terms of finding actual methods that might convince
wild dolphins that the inshore area is not a suitable or comfortable place
to hang around in, and that they should stay away. For example, I have a
heard of a pinging device placed on fishnets by fishermen to keep dolphins
away. Are these effective? Where can they be purchased? Can they be used in
inshore areas where people and other wildlife occur? Are there any other
kinds of effective devices available? Can you think of any other technique
or method to reduce this conflict?
Any assistance or ideas will be appreciated.
Please feel free to forward this letter to anyone you think might be able to
help.
Thank you. Simon.
Dr. Simon C. Nemtzov Wildlife Ecologist and Scientific Authority for CITES
Israel Nature and Parks Authority
3 Am Ve'Olamo Street Jerusalem 95463, Israel
Mobile phone and voicemail: +972-(0)57-762-227 Fax: +972-(0)2-500-5409
e-mail: simon.nemtzov@nature-parks.org.il
REPLY FROM ALEXANDER SHEREMET, RED SEA DIVER
It's a very disturbing news to me. Actually, a month-two or so ago, my
mother told me that one of her friends was bumped several times by a
(as he said) "very big, about 3m length, dolphin", while he was swimming in
the sea. The dolphin did it out of nothing, or so he says. If he is right
about the length, and for what I know - no wild dolphins swim close to the
shores here, it should be Cindy, the dominant male and a pod-leader of the
Dolphin Reef pod. It *could* be something like a conflict, related to the
aquatory Cindy might consider to be his own, that was "invaded" by swimmers.
Dolphins (at least for what I saw while diving here), and especially
pod-leaders, don't usually leave the place if being disturbed. They rather
show their displeasure and make invaders to leave. I saw it once while
diving at the Dolphin Reef, when a dolphin (one of old females there) has
approached a staff diver, but when the diver tried to rub her, she made some
harsh "blat" noises, and repeated them like 5-7 times until the diver
understood and took the hand away, and moved away some. Then the dolphin
slowly continued her path, not trying to evade the contact, not moving even
10cm away from her path. I believe that these problems with people on the
beaches to be hit/bit by dolphins could have the same source - usual people
don't know to understand dolphins, and usually don't know to respect their
privacy. As a result, they don't understand when dolphins are angry, and as
a result - the next biting case arises.
My mother just has said, that three dolphins from the Dolphin Reef were
returned to the Black sea because of these attacks cases. I didn't confirm
this info yet, hope to get some more info at the Dolphin Reef soon. It
really disturbs me...
Another thing that I just thought of, while writing: it could be something
related to the last loss we had at the Dolphin Reef. One of calves, 1y.-old
Nemesh, has died on August 6th because of the liver failure (it seems, got
it from his birth). His mother, Shy, is still restless, and it could be one
of the reasons that made some dolphins more aggressive here. I suspect it,
cause I don't recall such conflicts with swimmers to happen in the past.
Although, it's not the very first loss we've got at the Dolphin Reef.
Dolphins are being born, and they also die... Dolphin Reef news page still
has the news about Nemesh up there (actual for the October 2nd, 2002 news):
http://www.dolphinreef.co.il/scoop___/scoop___.shtml
Best regards, Alexander.
-- URL: http://www.DolphinWave.org Mail: on the web page (no spam) ICQ:
6615461
Cetaceans Galore In Spain Anna
Levin [letter to the Doaks]
I'm just back from visiting my sister in the south of Spain
and some lovely cetacean sightings. I was just writing up some notes...
At first the weather was too bad to get out to sea, but boats were going
into the sheltered bay of Algerciras. We saw a couple of striped dolphins in
the distance leaping high out the water and then big, big gangs of common
dolphins at the mouth of the bay.
They had young calves and they looked so tiny and incongruous and kind of
fragile in this bay full of tankers and enormous ferries and fringed with
high rises and gas works and industrial paraphernalia.
I was alternating between kind of watching it all at a distance - observing
the scene, comparing with practice in other places, noticing angle of
approach and changes in behaviour, whether the boat slows to no wake
speed... then just being a dolphin tourist too, delirious in a sea full of
dorsal fins, me and El yelling our heads off when they leapt alongside us.
It was like when I¹m dreaming at home and can see them everywhere, but this
time there really WERE dorsal fins in every wave. Big waves were coming off
the wake of a passing ferry and if you looked right down into the waves,
they were full of surfing dolphins.
Then the wind dropped and we could go out into the Strait of Gibraltar, the
first trip I did was with a different company. We came across a small group
of common dolphins as soon as we left the harbour, it was really obvious
they didn't want to play, they were deep diving whenever we approached.
We headed out into the Strait. Way over towards Africa there were all these
strange dark lumps moving through the water, they looked like giant dolphins
in slow motion.
It was my first sighting of pilot whales and they look so funny, really slow
and kind of ponderous, and I'd always understood that cetaceans can't stay
still, just the way they're shaped means perpetual motion, but somehow these
whales manage it, just blobbing about in the water, not moving on at all.
Sometimes they don't even roll like minkes or dolphins, just cruise
horizontally through the water with their fins at the surface like sharks.
It seemed to be some kind of clan gathering because different groups were
all converging just where we were...
Went out again the next day and that was the best trip of all. It was
interesting going on the different boats and seeing their different styles,
the Swiss are very Swiss punctual, strict, everyone seated, scientific.
The Spanish lot were very Spanish, warmer, more laid back. The woman who
runs it was leaning over the side singing and crooning to the dolphins and
babbling at them about how gorgeous they are.
But that day was hot and still and we saw striped dolphins, rolling along in
parallel course close to us. It was the first time I'd seen striped dolphins
close up, they move really gracefully, slower than common and smoother than
bottlenose. Really fluid and lovely, and wee calves with them.
Then bottlenose dolphins, then pilot whales again. Right around the boat
this time and really checking us out, surfacing around us and blowing in the
faces of kids that were leaning over the side. The whales and bnds were all
mixed up, it was funny to watch them because you'd see a big chunky pilot
whale. bottlenose dolphins and then a dolphin fin the next time something
surfaced. I always think bottlenose normally look so big and chunky after
seeing sleek common dolphins, but this time the bnd¹s looked so small and
agile and their fins all sharp and sleek among the big chunky lumps of pilot
whales
( maybe that¹s why they hang around with them?!)
At one point I looked around and there were fins all around the boat. Africa
just a blue haze on one side of us and Europe on the other, and the sea
dotted with small Moroccan fishing boats, and enormous tankers and ferries,
we were right in the middle in this wee boat in a sea of dorsal fins, pilot
whales and birds all around us and the striped
dolphins still leaping in the distance. 360 cetaceans. It is an amazing
place, and this was 'out of season', in the summer there are orcas around
for months, following the tuna into the Med, and fin and sperm whales...
maybe next year..."
Came home {Scotland] to wild icey winds and stormy
seas, and gannets have wisely left and the area feels strangely empty -
they're so prominent when they're here, the Bass Rock shining white with the
mass of them all and I spend so many evenings watching them glide and dive.
I felt a bit sad that they'd gone! Much love to you both,
Anna x
Sperm Whale Supports Japanese Dolphin Watching
Venture
Hi,
I'm sure you will all love this tale.
Robin Mankey and I have just returned from Japan, we were part of a small
group of activists who went to Futo to support Ishi-san, a former dolphin
hunter, in his first historic dolphin watching tour.
On Wednesday, the Japanese media turned up in their dozens to cover the
event. Two fishing vessels were turned into dolphin watching boats for the
day.. us activists with a few media on one with Ishi-san driving and the
other vessel packed with Japanese media.
Hours went by . Lots of birds, flying fish - nice scenery. We were all
getting a little nervous knowing that the chances of seeing a dolphin at
this time of the year were only 50/50. Besides, how were we to know whether
the dolphins recognised the sounds of the engines of killer boats.
Ten minutes before we were due to go in, the radio phone crackled. Ishi-san
got very excited yelling out - Whale.. Whale .. and pointing in the
direction of the media vessel which was some distance away. We could see a
black blob in the water. With tears pouring down his face, and all of us
standing up shrieking with excitement, we raced across the water to see a
very large SPERM WHALE circling the media vessel.
It was so close we all laughed.. just out of touching distance. And for the
next 20 minutes that whale just slouched around, giving the media an
absolute field day. I have never seen a whale behave that way.. not even in
San Ignacio Laguna.
This whale knew the boat was loaded with journalists.. he/she knew how
important this historic event was to whales and dolphins.
The next night the story went right across Japan on national television - it
was run in all the major papers.
We witnessed a miracle. Human and whale miracle. Sue Arnold
Dolphins of
Belize August 17,
2002 Berkeley, Ca. Dear Wade Doak,
I am writing to you after reading your 1981 book Dolphin Dolphin (which I
was lucky enough to find in our city library). First of all, let me
sincerely thank you for all the great work you and your family and friends
have done to help our understanding of human/Cetacean interactions. I am a
member of the Cousteau and Oceanic societies, have done a good deal of
snorkeling (NOT with dolphins, I¹m sorry to say), and am very interested and
concerned with our oceans and the ongoing degradation of that environment.
In fact, next month I will swim with dolphins as part of a ten-year research
project being carried out by the Oceanic Society in Belize. A big moment for
me.
A month later Hi Wade. Well, the week went by awfully quickly! It was very
hot (high 90's F), and the dolphins kept some distance. According to the
records kept by the Oceanic Society during this ten year study, there are
approximately 120 Bottlenose dolphins in the vicinity of Turneffe Atoll
(about 30 kilometers east off the coast of Belize), but they do not interact
very much with humans. There are no tourists there, no hotels (although
there is a dreadful plan to build a resort hotel on the northern part of the
island including a golf course!). We went out each morning and afternoon for
six days in a small skiff and saw dolphins about four times. Generally in
this area they travel in small groups (from one to three is common), but we
did see a group of five and a group of ten as well. Only once did the one of
them ride the bow of our boat, mostly they stayed near, but well out of
'reach'. I played my bamboo flute for them at one point, and several came
close; one even stuck his/her head out of the water to see what was up. We
swam with them twice--but they kept about ten meters away, circling, staying
just out of reach and almost out of visual contact in the slightly murky
water. We did hear them echolocating on us. That's about it. It was not
really very satisfying,
but a start (the first time I have ever been in the water with them), and
whetted my appetite for further contact.
In case you're interested, the head of research at the Oceanic Society
(based in San Francisco) is named Guy Oliver, and he can be found on the net
at: Oliver@Oceanic-society.org. He's an energetic, strong minded Marine
Biologist with a reasonably open mind and a positive attitude towards doing
all that can be done to protect these wonderful creatures. He had heard of
your books. I will stay in touch when other aspects of this wonderful study
develop, and I do seriously hope to make it over your way in the not too
distant future. I will likely be ordering some of your other books on disc
soon. All the best, James Shallenberger
Hot news from Norway: orca epic Gauthier mon fin cher ami
Tonight I read the teletext with amazement and delight. You may well know this already. If only I could be first to tell you..
This will complete your reconnection.
" Keiko, star of 'Free Willy', has turned up in a narrow Norwegian fiord, where he plays with the locals.
"The 10 m. whale, released into the wild just six weeks ago, even allowed children to ride on his back as he put on a display
for them.
"Keiko showed up in Norway after swimming 1400 km from Icelandic sea pen following his July release."
Merde alors Wade
From: Judith & Gauthier <reymchap@village.uunet.be Date: Tue, 03 Sep 2002 00:08:38 +0200 To: wade@igrin.co.nz Subject:
solitary killer whale
My dearest Wade,
they showed briefly this evening on the Belgian TV news a footage of a solitary orca playing with swimmers in a fjord of
Norwegia. I made a quick search on the Internet but could not find anything. Do you know about it ? The pictures were quite
impressive, with the orca gently pushing an inflatable boat upside down, putting two teenagers in the water, who obviously had
good fun !
Cheers
Gauthier
PS Sorry for these impulsive and irregular messages, but I have a lot of work for the moment. And at the same time I have
"reconnected" strongly with cetaceans these days !
MORE ON ORCA KEIKO
From: Judith & Gauthier
<reymchap@village.uunet.be
Date: Wed, 04 Sep
2002 12:10:52 +0200
It is
Keiko ! Should I say of course ? (If you want to know more, have a
look on www.wdcs.org and the unique press release I could grab). Well, it
make things a bit trickyer. As the vet's are now asking people not to have
contacts with him. Which I think is useless, as to me, the boss now is
Keiko. The only thing I would agree with is not to feed him with dead fish.
Although maybe that since he's feeding by himself, he would probably not
let himself depend on this outside food any more
So maybe Keiko is really on his way to
become an ambassador between orcas and people ? But for that, we have
to listen to him... At least he will finish his life in the place he
belongs to. And if he can't really get back in his orca community (was
he too young when he was caught to feel himself as an orca ? Remember
the baby chimp making a nervous breakdown when confronted to the fact
she was a chimp, not a human), at least I feel he has opened the way
for others which were caught as adults...
Just
some thoughts. Gautier
FROM
ROBBINS BARSTOW -USA
Dear
Wade -- Thanks for forwarding the story about Keiko playing with locals in a
Norwegian fiord! I first learned of Keiko's return to the wild, totally free
and independent now, a couple of weeks ago from the Jean-Michel Cousteau
internet site "Ocean Futures," which has been issuing periodic KeikoWatch
follow-ups on his Iceland sojourn. You are indeed the first to tell me,
however, about this Norwegian encounter. If true, it adds a whole new
dimension to the saga of Keiko, which is totally amazing and who knows what
it will lead to. I hope Norwegian whalers don't kill him because of his
threat now to their interests.
According
to my OceanFutures KeikoWatch dated 22 August 2002, the Humane Society
of the United States will distribute future Keiko updates. They can be
visited at: http://ocean.causesthatmatter.com/L/hsus.org/ace/352.cfm?
You will find quite interesting facts in this report, many of which parallel episodes in your books. Note that they were
inspired themselves by some Doak writings. I especially liked the bit with the plastic bag around the rostrum; tell me your
opinion on that one; it makes a good parallel with the humpback story.
cheers Gauthier
From: Dr Gauthier Chapelle Gauthier.Chapelle@naturalsciences.be
WADE'S REPLY
Many thanks, Gauthier. Dolphins have been recorded [this is off the top of my head but
documented in my Project Interlock files] playing in this way with seaweed; sticks; an oar; a tee shirt; a beer bottle; a
beach ball; a swim fin; self-generated toroid bubbles; a small sunfish! And yet scientists say they are not manipulative...
They use beak, pectoral, dorsal and tail much like a playful soccer player. Solo bottlenose Donald was especially enthusiastic
about towing yachts, some very large yachts, whose anchors he would uplift. He once created mayhem by entangling the anchors
of a group of yachts whose owners were at the pub on Xmas day. These
stories and many more are scattered throughout my four cetacean books listed on this web site.
I am very keen to hear of other episodes like this. I also have other episodes on file of whales playing with : giant kelp; a
drifting tree! a yacht's rudder [orca]; Hookers sea lion cubs ; errant New Zealand fishermen... and so it goes.
MORE ON DOLPHIN PLAY -comment on Dusty story above:
Dear Wade,
Indeed the piece of play with the algae and the plastic bag are a good feature of several animals. But the story I really
appreciate was when Dusty got its mouth stuck with the plastic bag, and immediately came to Gaetan to "ask" him to remove it.
This to me was really impressive, and reminded the example of "Sickle" the humpback from last week.
PS You ask what LFA stands for: The LFAS list is for "Low frequency active sonar". It is a bit of a crazy list, with
information and campaigns on that topic from the most informed and technical sources... to the most esoteric (which I know you
don't always enjoy too much). Anyway, if you want to have a go, you can subscribe by looking at the following. I quite often
find very interesting stuff, even if there is a lack of rigour in my opinion (but I love some of the esoteric parts...):
"Stop LFAS World WIDE!"
"Insist that people be told the truth about LFAS and other high intensity sonars. For additional updates go to this URL:
http://listen.to/lfas "
Cheers
Gauthier
Dr Gauthier CHAPELLE
rue Vautier 29
1000 Bruxelles BELGIUM
Dear Gauthier
New Scientist 17 Aug has an article on a New Caledonian crow that has advanced tool use. We are having to revise our
ideas on so many animals.
I have examples of tool use in sheep. Scottish sheep-not kiwis... But you are so right: it is the interaction with another
species that is so special in cetaceans. I have an anecdote from Florida involving a dolphin coming to people to have a hook
removed. And a similar one from the south of France which you may know about, with Eric Demay, the mentor of Dolphy.
My file on dolphins aiding humans continues to expand. I have examples of dolphins assisting whales too. And even, a shark!
Interspecies altruism is a fascinating domain.
sincerely Wade
Dolphin Communications:
A personal experience Rescuing a Harbour Porpoise
By Carol Drummond biorealism@top.monad.net
I have enjoyed everyone's comments and speculation on dolphins, and for anyone interested, would like to add my personal
experience 23 years ago with what I have been told was a harbor porpoise. I tell this story as a student of life. I am not a
scientist.
My husband and I were fishing from our 25' gillnet fishing boat in Juneau, Alaska, and I was 4-5 months pregnant. While I was
watching the net, I saw that a dolphin-like animal had been caught and was struggling under the water. I reeled in the net,
and slid the struggling form alongside of the boat and slipped one arm underneath 'him' so his blow hole was above water.
I could only see from his dorsal fins upward, which was about 3', making him probably 6' in length. He was very black on the
top, and it appeared he was white underneath. I remember thinking that his skin felt like a rubber tire. It never occurred to
me that he did not understand that I was trying to help him, and at all times I had this strong feeling that he knew exactly
what I was thinking before I said it.
I told him that I was pregnant and that he would have to lie very still because I could not put pressure on my stomach. He
immediately calmed down and lay still. While I have never thought he understood my words, I have always felt he knew my
thought, that he knew I was pregnant.
He had his right dorsal fin stuck in several squares of the net, and in the process of trying to twist himself free, he had
wrapped himself like a mummy. I was too busy trying to get him free to take time to inspect him closely, but I remember that
the outer two corners of his dorsal fin seemed to be square, not like the pictures of sloped, more triangular dorsal dolphin
fins that I had seen. Because I was holding him with one hand, I only had my other hand free to work on him, and I told him
that I would have to tear the net and it might cut him. Once again, while I do not think he understood my words, I believe he
understood my thought. I pulled the filament against his fin, and I remember seeing blood as it cut the surface of his flesh.
The cut was not serious, and while later I was struck that he did not move a muscle, at the time I simply knew he understood.
All the time I worked on him, his blow-hole was 6" from my face, and I remember listening to him breathe. It sounded just like
a human taking a breath.
When the fin was free, I was exhausted. I told him that I did not have the energy to push him away from the boat, and at that
moment he gently swam away. A few moments later I saw two dolphin-like forms swim very slowly near the boat and then slowly
slip away. I'd like to think the other form was his mate and that they were both thanking me.
I was very young at the time. It never occurred to me that this might not be a usual occurrence. And then, about 6 years ago I
took a course on marine mammals and told my instructor my story. He became very interested and gave a colleague my description
of the dorsal fin. His colleague said that harbor porpoises are native to the Juneau waters and had similar rectangular dorsal
fins. My instructor also explained that the lungs of a porpoise are very similar to the lungs of a human, and therefore, the
breaths the porpoise took would sound so human to me. Finally, my instructor also told me that at that time there was underway
a study between dolphins and pregnant humans. Several pregnant women were asked to swim in a pool with dolphins during their
pregnancies. It was planned that when these women gave birth, they would take their infants back to the pool to swim again
with the dolphins to find out whether the dolphins recognized the infants after having 'seen' them in the womb with their
sonar. My instructor felt very certain that this harbor porpoise 'saw' that I was pregnant and that I had experienced a
communication with him that had been experienced by others.
I have no proof, and I have no witnesses. To those of you who require dolphins to speak words in order to prove that they have
language, you may, in part, be disappointed. While they may or may not speak words as humans know them, I know in my heart
that they have another way of communicating without mechanical words. Perhaps dolphins speak on a different plane, a plane
with which humans are not yet familiar. There are some things in life that simply are, things to which we must simply be
sensitive.
Thanks for listening.
Carol Drummond . per Dr Gauthier CHAPELLE IRSNB rue Vautier 29
1000 Bruxelles BELGIUM
Humpback Intelligence -report from KENNENBUNKPORT, MAINE USA.
A whale watching boat, "The Nautilus" was about 12 miles ENE off Kennebunkport, Maine, when they encountered a humpback
female nicknamed "Sickle" by research biologists. This was the first unusual clue, because they normally have to be 20 miles
out before a sighting. According to Captain Jim Harkins, whom I interviewed by phone, he and his crew became concerned by her
behaviour - she was simply "bobbing" in the water, not her usual cavorting. He slowly approached the whale and then shut the
boat down completely. He says that she then passed across the bow of the boat and came along the port side and remained nearly
motionless, sidewise, about 5 feet away - exposing her left pectoral. They were stunned to find the fin completely encased in
300 feet of 3/8 inch nylon fishing rope! They said it was obvious to him, the crew and their
50 enthralled passengers that "Sickle" was quite deliberately asking for help!
She had her spring-born calf with her, hovering within feet, and both of them remained calm and motionless as the crew used a
gaff pole to gently and gradually dislodge all the line from her fin, pulling it on board. He remarked that it could have been
disastrous, had she opted to thrash or move off, because in their haste, they had it all entangled around their feet!
They were finally able to get it all off, and cut it -to the applause and jubilation of the passengers! And, most magically,
the clearly grateful "Sickle" and her calf decided to stay with her rescuers, hovering near the boat for one and a half hours,
as her enchanted admirers communed with her!!
Captain Harkins told me that there was a professional photographer aboard who captured the whole event, and that they hope to
have some of the photos up on their web page soon. He couldn't remember the address, but he'll be calling me back with that
info when they're up, and I will pass it on to all of you at that time!
Cheers, Anni
DOLPHIN NURSERY
Hi All! I am currently doing some preliminary investigations on a local bottlenose dolphin population in Forster
NSW, Australia for my Ph. D. in this area (starting next year).
Some locals told me something I've never seen, heard or come across in
literature before. They say that female bottlenose dolphins leave their
calves (apparently newborns up to juveniles) in a rocky area with a lot of
surf and then go foraging. The calves then stay VERY close to these rocks
and wait till their mothers return. Locals call these rocks "the nursery".
As I've never seen or heard that ever before I went out on a cruise boat and they really showed me what I almost couldn't
believe: 2 juveniles (my guess is about 6 months old) were VERY close to the rocks, almost being smashed onto the rocks. We
stayed there for about 10 minutes and there were no adult dolphins in sight.
According to the owner of the local dolphin watch boat this is not a single
event but seen regularly. Has anyone ever observed anything like that? Has that been published somewhere? I'd be grateful for
any comment on that matter. Thanks.
Daphne Buehler
c/o Fam. Ruetsche
Grundgasse 5
9500 Wil SG
Switzerland phyllopteryx@hotmail.com
BIMINI DOLPHIN ENCOUNTERS [BAHAMAS]
Those who have read my 'Encounters with Whales and Dolphins' book will know of the extraordinary Lily Banks dolphins, their
history and behaviour. In recent times a second encounter situation has developed at Bimini, a more accessible spot. Our
friend in Florida Ruth Samuels sent us this from exped operators Geoff and Christina:* [Wade]
"Dolphin encounters for the season started out good and have been getting longer and more intimate each week. There have been
many 1 to 11/2 hour interactions in the last few weeks with as many as 20 to 30 dolphins-the average pod is around 6-8.
There was an encounter recently that wasn't a long one but was very special-the day was glassy calm and the dolphins were
interacting with each other with a lot of high play kind of energy. When our guests entered the water it was as if time
stopped-the everyone was floating still and the dolphins swam into the human pod and just floated in between everyone with a
lot of eye to eye contact for about half an hour. Nothing moving-just floating on a beautiful calm day.
Every experience is so different and this one was very emotional for everyone.
We will be running this season until Sept 6 every Sat thru Fri. If anyone is interested there are still some spaces
available-some with really good discounts-contact me for info. There is also a week in Oct with space. Our New Years trip
and the trip the week before Christmas are filling well with spots still available."
*Geoffrey Hanan
Dolphinexpeditions.com
561-463-8400
866-463-8400 toll free
French Pass Dusky Dolphins Threatened
Marieke writes: Our host, Danny Boulton, is trying to establish a marine
mammal sanctuary in Admiralty Bay as the dolphin populations appear to be
under threat from the burgeoning marine farming industry. They have some
Texan dolphin researchers there who have discovered that the dusky dolphins
are part of the Kaikoura population, but that their feeding behaviours are
significantly different between the two locations - in Admiralty they feed
during the day instead of night, and because it's much shallower than at Kaikoura they work together to build bait balls and bring them to the
surface.. One concern is that if the dolphins are driven out by the mussel
farms (lost space and diminished nutrients) then the other species that rely
on their activity will suffer as well Danny's also worried about all the
recreational and commercial set netting that goes on there - you may
remember the news over Christmas with seven dead dolphins washed up around
French Pass - that was Danny's advocacy that got it to the papers.
Danny Boulton, when contacted by Wade , sent superb JPEG pix and wrote:
Yes I feel very much alone here and cannot see why we have an SPCA to
protect animals and a marine mammal permit that has no teeth in protecting
dolphin habitat. With the cumulative effect of set netting, trawling, and
marine farm development I wonder how long we can sustain any wildlife. We
have no marine reserves except for long Island at the other side of the
sounds. We have five dolphin species, four that are frequent to the area for
mating, birth, foraging and social activity. As very little research is
being done the natural value of the area as wildlife habitat is very much
under threat by all users. It pains me to see the erosion of these values.
Here we have five shag species but the main one feeding with dusky is the
Spotted shag along with the Australasian gannet, white fronted terns,
fluttering shearwater and also the NZ fur seal. Blue penguin and fish also
take advantage of the dolphins feeding action. danny@SeaSafaris.co.nz
Dolphins saved me
"The sharks circled Mr Dickson as he bled in the water"
By Phil Mercer BBC correspondent in Sydney
An Australian fisherman, rescued after 40 hours clinging to an upturned
dinghy, says he owes his life to dolphins that chased off a pack of circling
sharks. Thirty-six-year-old Grant Dickson's prawn trawler sank in rough seas
off the coast of northern Queensland. Two other crew members are feared
drowned. A search involving 18 aircraft covering over 2,000 square nautical
miles has so far found no sign of the missing men.
'Stalked'
Bleeding heavily and clinging to an upturned boat, Grant Dickson described
how a group of sharks had stalked him after his fishing boat had sunk.
It was, he felt, only a matter of time before they attacked him.
Talking on Australian television, the fisherman said one shark in particular
was moving closer and closer, before the intervention of a pod of dolphin
which moved in and scared the predators away.
His ordeal lasted several more hours as he continued to drift in the Pacific
ocean.
Thoughts of his family, he said, gave him the determination to survive.
Rescue
He was eventually rescued by a passing cruise ship almost two days after his
trawler sank.
It went down in rough seas after its nets had snagged on seaweed near Dunk
Island, south of Cairns.
Mr Dickson, who is in hospital recovering from exposure, has described how
he managed to reach an inflatable dinghy with another crew member, who then
disappeared after deciding to try to swim back to land.
The boat's skipper has also not been found, despite an extensive air and sea
search.
Rescue teams have continued to look for them but admit that as every hour
passes, the chances of finding the missing fishermen alive are becoming more
remote.
Orca Rescue: two stories at once
Wade Doak
On 14 July NZ TV news showed a mature female orca stranded in shallows
off a sandy beach at Paparoa in Bay of Plenty, New Zealand. A calf buzzed
around. Three young men waded out and managed to refloat her with her tail
lashing cooperation and then embraced each other for joy.. She rejoined pod.
Nice one. Things have progressed in New Zealand and unfounded fear of orca
has been reduced to this point. Project Interlock's media output takes just
a little credit . .. I think of those scientific voices I have heard in the
US who poo poo cetacean rescue.[But then , there is no scientific reason for
not eating our dead elders, provided well cooked. Avoid the brain.. ]
Synchronously we read print and tv media story of a juvenile orca at
Telegraph Cove in British Columbia, Canada that was solitary and in poor
health. After nursing care it was restored to its pod. I still await news as
to whether it successfully bonded...
SCAR: Fiordland's SOLO DOLPHIN
Ruth and Lance Shaw
Hi Wade, have Lance at home and this is what he recalls re Scar our solo
dolphin. We do have some photos of it when we were swimming with it in
Doubtful Sound. We don't know if it was female or male. It was very badly
scarred from previous injuries. This would have been about seven Project Int
years ago.
On one occasion one of our passengers was being abducted by Scar who was
carrying him out to sea over his beak in the same way as females will carry
their still born. [This is also courtship behaviour when males do it- Wade]
Lance had to go out and take him off the dolphin.
Noise/vibration: Scar would place his beak within a few centimetres of a
spinning prop and stay there. The local fisherman said that he did that with
any boat, including outboard motors. Everyone commented that instead going
straight to the bow to bow ride he went straight to the prop. The other
thing he did was go into the cone of noise right under the engine and stop
there, enjoying the either the noise or vibration. A fisherman didn't know
he was behind the boat and reversed over him, injuring him so badly that he
had to be shot.
When we put people in the water with him it was the swimmers who tired first
and Scar would follow them to the side of the Breaksea Girl and try to
encourage them back in. it was extremely sad as many of the fishermen fed
him or her... Love from us both Ruth and Lance Shaw [Breaksea Girl charter
vessel operators]
DEAFNESS IN SOLO DOLPHINS: A SEQUENCE OF LETTERS.
This correspondence began with a letter by Wade Doak to his friends seeking
information on a solo dolphin in NZ¹s Doubtful Sound.
They replied :
From: Ruth and Lance <eco@xtra.co.nz
To: Wade Doak <wade@igrin.co.nz
Date: Thursday, 13 June 2002 5:43 PM
³Now the solo dolphin: we do have some photos of it when we were swimming
with it in Doubtful Sound. We don't know if it was female
or male. It was very badly scarred from previous injuries. This would have
been about 7 years ago. After it happened I was in contact with a dolphin
researcher in USA who has been studying deafness in marine mammals and she
said that a lot of solo dolphins have been found to be deaf. Her name is
Darlene Ketten. Hope this is of some help, smiles from Ruth and Lance
Ruth and Lance
Fiordland Ecology Holidays
www. fiordland. gen. nz
Wade then wrote to several other friends with solo dolphin
experiences, about this deafness theory. First to Graham Timmins in
Ireland:{ who has experience of several solos including the longest to
interact with people: Fungie]
Dear Graham
This is apropos a dolphin that was very aggressive to a scientist down in
our fabulous Fiordland a while back. How does the
deafness theory strike you? This couple run a superb eco aware vessel called
Breaksea Girl. cheers Wade
Graham¹s enthusiastic reply:
From: "Graham Timmins" <gramail@oceanfree.net
Date: Wed, 19 Jun 2002 10:28:47 +0100
To: "Wade Doak" <wade@igrin.co.nz
Cc: "Keith" <keith@irishdolphins.com
Subject: deaf dolphins .
Wade, I think you have hit on something here. When we were swimming with
Dony {Randy or Gearges} last year I suggested the
same idea. My reasoning:
(1) I never once heard him vocalise, EVEN when we were surrounded by other
dolphins who were squeaking and whistling constantly. In fact it seemed like
they were shouting at him to try and get a response! (Fungie and Dusty,
however, do vocalise. Fungie vocalises, in the sense that you can hear him
'zapping' you sometimes and if investigating some new object he will
sometimes turn his head on one side like a dog getting a better fix on a
sound source - well, at least he used to do that in the days when there was
anything new for him!
(2) At times he would open his mouth wide and make what I can only describe
as a squawk - a harsh, undolphin-like noise which reminded me of the grunts
and strange noises which some deaf children make (before they are socialised
out of the habit!)
(3) he is undersized for his apparent age and might therefore be thought
never to have fed adequately since weaning - rather than being thin but full
size which would indicate recent loss of foraging ability.
(4) we saw him following fishing boats when they were discarding fish. Later
I saw him regurgitating bones, suggesting he may have been eating an
unsuitable or less than ideal species of fish. And he seems to have followed
fishing boats on all his travels.
(5) he did not react to strange underwater noises eg video cameras in the
same way as Fungie and Dony - who were fascinated by these the first time
they heard them.
(6) he doesn't interact at a distance like Fungie: he is always 'in your
face' and likes to be in immediate physical contact. he doesn't sneak up
behind you and surprise you like they do at times. Sometimes we saw him
hanging around a buoy or moored boat at 30m-50m distance and he just didn't
seem to be aware of our presence. Then he would suddenly see us and come
straight over.
I will try to follow this up more now. Do you have any more on this from
your Fiordland dolphin or any others you have studied? Do you have a contact
e-mail for the researcher mentioned, Darlene Kitten?
all the best Graham
------------------------------------------------------------
Wade contacted Bill Rossiter in Massuchussets re Darlene
Ketten:
From: Rossitercsi@aol.com
To: <wade@igrin.co.nz
Date: Thursday, 20 June 2002 2:43 PM
Subject: Darlene Ketten
Hi Wade,
It is probably Darlene Ketten, a no-nonsense expert on cetacean hearing. I
have known her for years through Navy noise issues. I like her for objective
but involved position; she doesn't want animals hurt by human noise, but
hates hype. Has lab to study effects of loud noises on dead cetaceans...
from properly prepared head samples from strandings or entanglements with
possible relationship to loud noise event (on alert to respond immediately
at site), or subject dead heads to loud noises to see what happens to
structure and nerves.
Note that her two jobs are at extremely prestigious institutions.
Bill
Dr Darlene R. Ketten
(1) Harvard Medical School MEEI, Room 705C 243 Charles Street Boston, MA
02114 USA
(2) Biology Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), Woods
Hole, MA 02543 USA tel; fax: 617-573-4275
Ketten; D. R. Associate Scientist, Biology Dept., Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution Woods Hole, Mass. 02543;
tel; work: WHOI 5082892731 HMS 6175734083
<dketten@whoi.edu
From: Rossitercsi@aol.com
To: <wade@igrin.co.nz, <graham@irishdolphins.com, <gramail@oceanfree.net
Date: Thursday, 20 June 2002 3:39 PM
Subject: deaf solo dolphins & Dony/George?
Bill also contacted Graham Timmins:
Dear Graham,
Wade asked me for a contact for Darlene Ketten, which I hope that he sent on
to you (but it's below as well). I went back and read the whole chain of
emails to find that you're the man to talk to about Dony, George or whoever
the randy dolphin thinks he is.
I've been unable to follow "the Dony / George show";I didn't know that Dony
simply disappeared. Was this just before people were going to capture him?
Was there any connection? Has Dony/George reappeared anywhere? Have there
been any reports on the event to date that I could pull off the Internet or
get by email? Do you have any opinion on what, if anything, should be done
with Dony if he gets frisky again?
I've put comments and contact information for Darlene Ketten below. She's
usually very busy, but should be be extremely interested in your experience
with solo dolphins that didn't seem to have normal acoustical behavior, like
Dony. Using dolphins and whales that died (fishing gear entanglement, boat
impacts, etc) one of the things she's researching is the effect of loud
noise on structures and neural systems. But she's found a few had been
profoundly deaf in one or both ears before they died in accidents, perhaps
for years, but they showed no signs that the handicap had impaired their
survival. Some suggestion, I think, that one may have been aided by others
over a long term, but that's from my faulty memory.
Graham, if you have any more to tell on the solo dolphins, the noise issue,
and just about anything else, please include me in.
Thanks,
Bill
William W. Rossiter
President Cetacean Society International
P. O. Box 953, Georgetown, CT 06829 USA
ph/fx 203-431-1606
rossiter@csiwhalesalive.org
www. csiwhalesalive. org
Wade also wrote to Dr Mike Bossley in Adelaide, Australia who
studied a solo dolphin called Jock intensively:[ account in Doak¹s
book ŒFriends in the Sea Œ: details on this website].
From: bossley <bossley1@hotkey.net.au
To: Wade Doak <wade@igrin.co.nz
Date: Thursday, 20 June 2002 10:32 AM
Subject: deaf solo dolphins
Hi Wade
I doubt very much that Jock was deaf. He vocalised frequently AND used
sonar, both of which I recorded many times on the sound track of video via
hydrophone. He would also come from quite a distance when we fired up the
motor on my boat. However, it is very likely that dolphins become solitary
for different reasons and therefore deafness may be a factor in some
situations.
Also, I had an email from a student called Yvonne Miles who you may be in
contact with saying Randy / Georges has turned up in Weymouth. If this is
true lets hope he is not "discovered" there.
Regards
Mike
Graham Timmins sent this reply to Bill
Rossiter:
----- Original Message -----
From: Graham Timmins <mailto: gramail@oceanfree.net
To: Rossitercsi@aol.com
Cc: Keith <mailto: keith@irishdolphins.com
Sent: Thursday, June 20, 2002 10:16 AM
Subject: Re: deaf solo dolphins & Dony/George?
Hi Bill and many thanks for making contact! I'm afraid we have been a bit
slack about telling people like yourself of our existence. I
guess I have been waiting till the website was 'perfect' and 'finished'
before putting the word out but I realise now that is unreal, and it
seems it's already good enough to draw together information which no one
else is spotting, so I hereby recommend you check out
www.irishdolphins.com <http://www.irishdolphins.com for the full story of
Dony and his travels, amongst other info on the Irish
interactive dolphins! we will also put you on the mailing list so you get
news updates as they happen.
We share your take on the Dony/Georges/Randy intervention. Once we knew they
didn't intend any use of force we withdrew our
opposition to the 'lure him away' plan as it was obviously a non-starter
anyway. But in general we are opposed to any intervention in
the free will of a wild dolphin, even when it appears to us that the animal
is putting itself into danger. We believe it is a matter of
respect and that intervening with cetaceans shows we look down on them as
inferiors who do not know what they are doing and
cannot make their own choices. By contrast we think they are at least as
smart as we are and probably smarter. Other people also
do a lot of dumb things but we don't ship them off to other countries as a
result! Well, not unless we classify them as 'illegal
immigrants' which I suppose Dony is coming to resemble!
Also the injuries Dony received were grossly exaggerated by some people; as
far as we can see his feeding, movement and
survival etc has not been in any way impaired by propeller gashes, ghastly
though they admittedly look.
If Dony settles again in a busy harbour and starts being 'frisky' there are
two hot issues as we see it: the dolphin's safety and the
people's safety. The first could be covered by enforcing the existing
legislation preventing harassment: motor boats should not be
allowed to make close approaches etc. It is only motor boats which pose any
threat to him, not canoes or surfers or swimmers. The
second is also exaggerated wildly: no-one has been hurt by Dony although
hundreds have swum with him. But warning notices could
and should be posted explaining that he is wild and strong etc and that
there is a potential danger and it is at your own risk if you go
swimming etc. Having done these two things the authorities should then sit
back and enjoy the privilege and spectacle of a wild
dolphin choosing to visit their town and entertain their citizens and
visitors!!
The idea of having a diver be towed on a line behind a boat through this
busy shipping lane with a dolphin following was frankly nuts. But at
the same time opposition within the coalition of English conservation groups
was becoming more vocal and this may have been a factor in canning it.
Whatever, it was only two days after the attempt was abandoned that the
dolphin also left Weymouth. For the story of his subsequent movements follow
the links from the Dony home page atm http://irishdolphins.com/webpilot/list/details.asp?
l=2&contentid=78
<http://irishdolphins.com/webpilot/list/details.asp? l=2& contentid=78 .
I see what you mean about Darlene Kitten. I will try to have a look at
papers she has published before trying to contact her. It shows
we respect her work etc.
Hope this answers your questions for now,
best regards
Graham [PS we heard yesterday that the dolphin is still in the
Devon/Cornwall area]
------------------------------------------------------------
Graham Timmins
Ballyferriter, Tralee, Co. Kerry, Ireland
Tel: (+353) 66 915 6452
Mobile: (+353) 86 803 4783
Email: graham@irishdolphins.com
Web: www.irishdolphins.com <http://www.irishdolphins.com
Charting interactions between dolphins and people
Jo Berghan, Northland, NZ Solo Dolphin Researcher made this comment:
From: Jo Berghan <delphinus@xtra.co.nz
Date: Tue, 25 Jun 2002 17:25:07 +1200
To: Wade Doak <wade@igrin.co.nz
Subject: Re: deaf dolphs
Hey Wade
Very, very interesting ! I believe that the solitary that I monitored in the
Kaipara Harbour last year was also deaf. He never echolocated, despite the
zero visibility he was living in, and rarely whistled, despite me listening
with a hydrophone for hours. He rammed into my boat one day when we
were stationary and had also hit another boat. I had wondered if he was
hearing impaired, so this is a very interesting debvelopment. I
haven't heard anything about Randy for weeks now - have you ?
Cheers Jo
Ruth, on seeing the emails, having begun it all, responded:
From: Ruth and Lance <eco@xtra.co.nz
To: Wade Doak <wade@igrin.co.nz
Date: Wednesday, 26 June 2002 7:31 AM
Subject: RE: deaf dolph
Hi Wade, I am not at all surprised as about three years ago when lance and I
were trying to stop Fiordland Travel put yet another boat into Doubtful
Sound, huge that takes 70 overnight passengers I spent a lot of time
researching the effects tourism would have on the pod of dolphins. I spoke
to Darlene Ketten and about 20 other dolphins experts around the world plus
collected all sorts of noise information from the USA Navy. A Dr Williams
from England who has been studying a pod of dolphins for years offered to
come out to Fiordland and help set up a research project centred around
noise and the possible effects on the dolphins. Even though I tried to get
support for him to come out no one was interested, this work is now being
done by the researcher who is in Doubtful Sound but it is not his specialty.
When Lance and I presented our submission protesting against the huge FT
boat and asking for controls to be placed on the growth of tourism in
Doubtful Sound it all basically 'fell on deaf ears." The evidence now
coming out is that the noise is effecting the dolphins and because a
'scientist' is telling them they are starting to listen... but no action of
course. I have a huge file on all the work I did at the time with contact
numbers email addresses etc. We bought a wonderful book from USA $155.00 nz
all about noise and the effects on marine mammals. After I had read it and
done all the research I think I was better informed than most of the marine
biologists in NZ!
I was very lucky to have support from all over the world and I spoke to many
wonderful researchers who have been involved in the field of underwater
noise, we do not realise just how serious it is. My firm belief is that the
pod of dolphins in Doubtful Sound will be displaced by tourism and the
increase in recreational boating, we are already seeing evidence of this.
The sad thing is that they have been resident in the fiord so it the only
'home' they know, so what will happen when they leave? Tourism comes first
of course, and every boat targets the dolphins, make people smile and feel
happy. it sickens me and even though I have written to DOC many times they
do nothing.
Something will be done when it is too late. I am not saying the dolphins in
Doubtful are deaf, they aren't as we hear them vocalising, but what
detrimental effects has tourism and the continual noise of engines have on
them?
It is interesting to note what Graham Timmins said about vocalisation, there
is a pod in England that is lives in the main passage way of the fast
ferries and they do not vocalise, the researcher had not thought to find out
if they were deaf until I emailed him. They now believe the entire pod is
deaf.
We are still up in Nelson, I will be home in about 8 days so if you need any
further info let me now. Glad I have stirred up some interest. Love from
Ruth and Lance
Ruth and Lance
Fiordland Ecology Holidays
www. fiordland. gen. nz
Bill Rossiter from USA re NZ SOLO dolphin Scar
Scar seems to have been suffering from a profound hearing loss, so the prop
wash must have been a pleasure to feel. Tragic that he never understood the
prop danger and was so injured that he had to be shot. But why would people
expect that any solo would understand such dangers? I've seen the same
stuff... and it's scary. I also have seen many cetaceans avoid boats, too
far away for the boat occupants to even know they were there. So they
learned something bad, sometime.
Some of the tuna/dolphin studies suggest that as oceanic dolphins learn to
avoid nets, and fishing boats, they develop stress symptoms from fear...
they can hear the boats a long way off and must be really scared as they are
approached. The idiots doing the study proclaimed that the dolphins were OK
because once capture seems inevitable they just hang there, waiting. What is
probably happening instead is, like capture myopathy, the dolphins have been
so stressed out that they approach a catonic state. I don't recall if there
is evidence that they equate the noise of a small helicopter or ultralight
finding/tracking them with the appraoch of the boat. If that is documented
then we have a disastrous fear response until the machine leaves because
it's low on fuel, probably after stressing the dolphins that try to dive or
flee.
.
This correspondence may develop....
Dolphins in Israel
Dear Wade! Finally I've found your address! It's an old Russian, and
now Israelic friend of yours, Alexander. I was moving a lot since I went to
live in Israel (new place, new country, had to find the right place to
stay), and after these moves I couldn't find some of my papers with
addresses. And just now, accidentally, following some web page about
dolphins, I've found yours one and I'm happy to be able to write to you
again!
Me and the rest of my family, who also came to Israel, now live in Eilat, at
the southernmost part of Israel, and the northernmost part of the Red sea.
It's probably the best town in Israel and we are going to stay here. There
is even a place with dolphins just about 6km from my home! The place is
called "Dolphin Reef", and is a part of a sea shore, encircled with nets,
where 4 dolphins were brought from one of Russian captivity places and
placed there. Several years ago the two gates were opened in the nets and
dolphins (there are 13 dolphins here now, all born here since 1990, the
Reef's creation) are free to swim out to the open sea and be back whenever
they want! Dolphins here also know how to hunt for their own food, and they
do it, partially cause they get only about a half of their ration from the
staff. The older dolphins more time prefer to stay at "home", while younger
ones spend a lot of time outside, playing, hunting or stealing some fish
from the fish-farm which is situated about 5km from the Reef (people there
don't mind it). Sometimes they even skip the feeding time, staying in the
open sea. Until several months ago there were simple "shows", or rather,
interactions, when the staff was asking dolphins to do things like jumping,
fast swimming, and other things natural for dolphins (no hoops, balls, or
any other circus show attributes), but now they don't do even this, leaving
dolphins just to be themselves. I really do like this place. People there
really do care after dolphins and leave dolphins to be the "owners" of it,
not disturbing them, trying to do as much for their comfort and freedoms, as
they can. I also got my diving license at the Dolphin Reef, learning to dive
with dolphins swimming around, and now I go to dive there whenever I have
some free time. It's so wonderful to see dolphins being real dolphins, being
a guest and being welcomed by them!
These weeks I go through the mandatory military service, the "new soldier"
course, which will last till March 26th, and then I will know if they take
me to the actual service for one year, or I will be moved straight to the
reserve group, which means a month of the service every year. I hope for the
later, I don't really like to spend so much time in the army, away from my
home and the sea.
Hope to talk to you again soon! Best wishes, Alexander Sheremet.
Dear Alexander What a thrill to hear from you and to know you have
achieved your dream! I still treasure your letters. Thank you so much for
your description of the Dolphin Reef situation . I have heard of it and
appreciate your comments. I always reject captivity but it looks like the
Eilat dolphins are teaching the humans about freedom and mutual acceptance.
I gather that some of them have come there from the wild to join the former
captives? In Australia they feed dolphins for tourists at a place in
Queensland. In many countries it is illegal to interfere with their natural
behaviour.
I wish you well during your army days.
Have you heard of Israeli dolphin scientist Oz Guzman with whom I have
exchanged email? Shalom! Wade Doak
-- URL: http://www.DolphinWave.org Mail: dolphin@dolphinwave.org ICQ:
6615461
Solitary False Killerwhale in Canada.
My question to Peter Hamilton, Lifeforce organisation Vancouver: [ lifeforcefoundation@3web.net ] Are you still encountering the Pseudorca
described in your newsletter year 2000? Did interaction evolve to greater
complexity? Wade
Hi: No major changes in the FKW situation. Working on methods to determine
behaviours. Two cases of lone young (two year old) orcas. One from Southern
Community in North and one from Northern Community in South (BC and Washington state). Fighting aquariums who want to capture them. Peter
My reply: The only lone orca I have heard of were juveniles. One
befriended an oil rig in the Nth Sea ,interacting with the crew and divers,
until it withdrew. But anything is better than captivity... Wade
Hector's Dolphins
Yesterday I was able to go for a short swim in Porpoise Bay [Southland] with
some Hector's dolphins! They're pretty quiet, but the locals say if you
don't bother them they'll often come over to investigate. We just swam out
in to the bay, off to one side, and a couple came over - very cool! One was
even doing flips in the air off in the distance. Neat camp spot at Curio bay
too - lots of penguins and a sea lion or two! Next time I'll wear a wetsuit
though, the water is a bit chilly down here. Cheers! Wade Borz from Canada.
April 2002
FROM ALEXANDER -Red Sea . [
Russian boy immigrant to Israel from Kiev]
Dear Wade,
My military service is going to be even better than I've hoped. I'm serving
as a cook on a sea base in Eilat. One week I work there, one week - off, at
home, and even every night I go to sleep at home. It's just like another job
for me: no weapon, almost no military uniform, and as safe, as it could be
in Israel. There are even two dolphins pictures on the main gate, and a
dolphin sculpture right in front of the kitchen's entrance. It seems, it was
my fate to get to this place.
This Saturday I was diving at the Dolphin Reef. There are several one-year's
old calves - the most playful age, it seems. One of them got a piece of
seaweed and brought it to almost every diver to play with. He didn't even
want to be rubbed, just to play. I couldn't resist and bought a video tape
of an introductory dive they were filming that time. There was some footage
of that calf.
My Reply
Dear Alexander
With the news each night Jan and I worry about you but now we feel very
relieved. A cook! A musician too, if I recall accurately. What
a range of accomplishments you have now.
It is amazing how universal that seaweed game is with dolphins and whales of
several species and all over the world. Sperm whales
have be seen playing it with a drifting tree. And young right whales down
here at the Auckland Islands play it with giant kelp and sea
lion pups. a beluga played it with a boat fender in Massachussetts. Opo [NZ]
played it with a child's ball or a beer bottle!
In the Bahamas the spotteds have played it with somebody's Tee shirt. But
one took it away and did not bring it back.
Dusky dolphins off Kaikoura [NZ] have been filmed playing a version where
they release the weed and another scoops it up but each time adroitly on a
different appendage: fluke tip; dorsal; pectoral fin etc. The cameraman was
included. It reminds me of soccer players fooling around playfully with the
ball toe, head heel etc- a cooperative game involving skill like beach ball-
not a competition for possession as we might assume. cheers Wade
Dear Wade,
My military service is going to be even better than I've hoped. I'm serving
as a cook on a sea base in Eilat. One week I work there, one week - off, at
home, and even every night I go to sleep at home. It's just like another job
for me: no weapon, almost no military uniform, and as safe, as it could be
in Israel. There are even two dolphins pictures on the main gate, and a
dolphin sculpture right in front of the kitchen's entrance. It seems, it was
my fate to get to this place.
This Saturday I was diving at the Dolphin Reef. There are several one-year's
old calves - the most playful age, it seems. One of them got a piece of
seaweed and brought it to almost every diver to play with. He didn't even
want to be rubbed, just to play. I couldn't resist and bought a video tape
of an introductionary dive they were filming that time. There was some
footage of that calf.
From Bill Rossiter USA [ President Cetacean Society International, Connecticutt.]
Hi Wade,
What a wonderful circle of friends you have, sending you their stories of
games played with dolphins. I've watched (and have photos of) a humpback
playing with a trunk of a cedar, with well rounded knobs. The whale would
roll and push the log across the top of his head, and seemed to be enjoying
the feel of it... I thought of those massage rollers people use.
The seaweed games I've had or watched underwater with spotted and white
sided dolphins seem to fit a pattern. I call the game "possession",
somewhere on a scale between one of our dogs prancing around with some
stuffed toy, even parading in front of the other with rolled eyes and mock
growls, and women wearing all the jewelry they can, well aware of other
women checking them out!
With dolphins the game seems more like sharing, because dolphins probably
have no concept of ownership, but the "look at me" aspect is very real. I
think that if the seaweed is dropped for me the rule is for me to keep it
awhile and let it go for another.
"Fraggle Rock", a popular children's show in the US, had a special rock that
was given by the last holder in a special ceremony for another creature's
birthday. Each time the receiver made a fuss as if it was the most unique
and wonderful gift. The lesson was in the giving and sharing, not the thing
itself.
From Toni Frohoff ,Texas
Thank you Wade, How inspirational ... that in the midst of so much war and
violence that something so beautiful could occur. We need more of this!
It's so interesting to be discussing this peace/war subject with you right
now. Only an hour ago I was typing in the following for inclusion in our new
[Sierra Club] book .. Best, Toni Frohoff ,Texas
"The Cetacea hold an important lesson for us. The lesson is not about whales
and dolphins, but about ourselves. There is at least moderately convincing
evidence that there is another class of intelligent beings on Earth beside
ourselves. They have behaved benignly and in many cases affectionately
toward us. We have systematically slaughtered them. Little reverence for
life is evident in the whaling industry - underscoring a deep human failing.
In warfare, man against man, it is common for each side to dehumanize the
other so that there will be none of the natural misgivings that a human
being has slaughtered another .
- Carl Sagan, The Cosmic Connection, New York: Doubleday, 1973:
From Ruth
Wade, thanks so very much for sharing
the dolphin games stories.. One of my encounters that I 'logged' included a
seaweed game. It appeared to me like "I've got it!" ... and it was very much
like I have seen a few dogs play with a stick when they'd prance with it and
the other dog would attempt to take it, then finally the one that had it
first would let it go.. and off the new possessor would run... I did see two
spotted dolphins interacting that way and then one dropped it in front of me
. I picked it up and swam a bit but then I did a U turn and the dolphin came
back towards me, so I put my arm out , let the seaweed go and the dolphin
picked it up.
Also, I saw that spotted dolphin show -off game with the sea weed being
carried on various parts of her body... there was a group of us in the water
at the time, and the dolphin would swim through the group, go out of sight
and then come back through the group with the seaweed across another part of
its body. It was quite remarkable as to how it managed to keep the weed from
sliding off!! Ruth Samuels Florida
I can send the original log via regular mail if you'd like!
My reply Hi Ruth Yes I would love to see that regular log .This topic is gathering
steam. I have just recalled how Aussie solo dolphin Jock playing with an oar
balanced across his back , carrying it around when tossed to him in an
Adelaide mangrove creek.. [it is in my book Friends in the Sea]
DO PHEROMONES PLAY A ROLE ON Tursiops
truncatus SEXUAL BEHAVIOUR?
From Jon O. Gascon; newethologist@yahoo.com
I am a Veterinary Medicine student in the Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona
(UAB) in Barcelona, Spain, and I am currently doing some research on the
behaviour of a group of captive dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) in the Zoo of
Barcelona. I have found plenty of information about this species in several
libraries inside and outside the University, and I have even consulted the
bibliographic record of the Zoo. In spite of having obtained interesting
data on dolphins' sexual behaviour, no article talks about the activity of
pheromones at this time of the Tursiops life.
It may seem stupid asking such a question, knowing they live in the water,
but we must not forget they evolved from terrestrial mammals whose sexual
life depended greatly on the activity of pheromones, as we can see it today
in our closest animals like dogs and horses. Therefore, any information
saying whether they make use of pheromones or not, and if so, in which way,
will be welcome. Please, let me know if you have something.
Thank you very much. Yours sincerely, Jon O. Gaston;
newethologist@yahoo.com
My reply I know that on several occasions male dolphins have become
aroused , even quite rough and possessive , towards menstruating women.
Whether this is pheromonal or just tiny traces of blood is an open question.
Wade
From
Paul Reifsneider USA.
Dear Wade In the category of the 'games' discussion on the
Project Interlock Emails page : On three occasions ( in Hawaii with Spinner
Dolphins, in the Bahamas with Atlantic Spotted Dolphins and in the Bay of
Plenty, NZ with Common Dolphins), I have had a dolphin do a good mimic of me
doing a poor imitation of them. I usually try to do a dolphin kick (though
we can't all have the nice 'dolphin suit' that Jan uses) even before any
interaction just to show them that I'm ready to play. On these meetings, a
dolphin has swum parallel to me, within five feet, slightly ahead and done
an exaggerated version of a normal dolphin swim - head going high then low,
sort of like a bucking horse. The optimist in me says that the message is
"Great - keep it up, we know you're trying hard... cool man...", of course
the other possibility is that they are holding up a mirror and saying "This
is what you look like." Maybe it's a little of both.
My reply Dear Paul thanks for your contribution to this discussion.
It is amazing that the exaggerated response to dolphin swimming mimicry by
divers has been demonstrated by the three species you describe as well as
several times in my books : anecdotes from my wife Jan and other divers.
Wish we had it on video. As with the seaweed games and several other
behaviors, consistency across species and in widely different localities is
noted. I look forward to hearing how your Big Isle experience goes. For me
the Kealakekua spinners were mind-boggling. Wade
Re Dolphin Games: from Dr Mike
Bossley, Adelaide, Australia.
Hi Wade Many thanks for allowing me to look in on the web conversation.
I am flat out at the moment but one thought I had is that dolphins seem to
play (at least sometimes) in a way which I have not seen a dog or other
animal do and that is they seem to set challenges for themselves, ie :
trying to do something ever more difficult in the form of balancing an
object or tossing it from one part of their body to another, etc. All the
best Mike
My reply Dear Mike It may be a brief comment, but a very valuable
insight , drawn from a lot of direct , field experience. I am so pleased to
know you will be keeping watch on future discussion. Always grateful for
your input. Wade
Here are the latest letters on the
solo dolphin in UK/France.
Monica Wilke is in Banyuls, South France and did her Ph D on solo
dolphins. She has visited us in NZ.
Dear Mike, Dear Wade,
Yesterday night, the English responsible woman, Jennifer Alexander phoned me
again to ask advice. I told her that I am trying at the
moment to get a local protection law that I got through for our coast last
summer (to protect a familiar common dolphin mum with calf) generalized as a
national law for all the French coast. I think that I could be sucessful as
I have the support of the responsible of the CRRM in La Rochelle which is
the official French institute for all cetacean work. If I succeed in doing
this, Georges/Randy would be quite easier to protect in the French area with
the help of all the authorities we have here (police, office national de la
chasse et de la faune sauvage, prefectures and if necessary even the
army...). I had proposed already several times to accompany Georges/Randy
back to the well surveyed French area where he still was some weeks ago by
proposing him to follow a boat. I think it would be worth trying as the
English do not have any control of the situation.
Jennifer however answered to me that the English authorities do not accept
this solution as it is quite clear the the dolphin can come
back as soon as he finds another boat to follow. She made very clear that
they want to put the poor chap in captivity - as proposed by Rick - in an
closed sea pan. I am quite disappointed that they do not imagine any other
solution. I agree with you, Mike that it should be possible to protect the
animal using a patrolling boat and the police or other official people to
get the orders to be respected. I was also thinking that there might be
first an seriously injured person before the dolphin is getting harmed.
However, Randy is so much excited with boats that he has now many many cuts
of the propellers, not only one or two as I saw it often with other solitary
and sociable dolphins. And he continues his pure sexual interaction, in
particular with women...
Any suggestions to this strange and uncomfortable situation?
Love Monica
Veterinary Report on Bottlenose
dolphin, 'Randy/Georges', Saturday, 25th May 2002.
I again examined Georges from the boat and in the water. Due to strong winds
rippling the surface of the water, my ability to visualise
the animal's skin below the water surface was not as good as on previous
occasions.
The wound behind his rostrum, on the right hand side of the melon, reported
by Ric O'Barry and Jenny Alexander on Tuesday, 21st
May, was examined. It is approx. 3" long, very narrow and straight and would
appear to have been made by a sharp object.
Because it was so narrow, the wound's depth was difficult to judge, but it
was observed gaping on one occasion, by one of my
BDMLR colleagues. It appears to be deeper than other wounds observed
previously, with the exception of the wound on the
leading edge of his dorsal fin. A superficial wound, perhaps 6" long was
also observed just behind his blowhole. There was no
evidence of infection associated with these wounds.
Also observed was an area of apparently necrotic skin, roughly triangular in
shape, green- brown in colour and situated just below
the wound on the leading edge of his dorsal fin on the right hand side. This
is the first sign of significant infection I have observed and
is a cause for concern. Possibly the epidermal sloughing observed at the
time of my last visit was, in retrospect, the first sign of this
infective process.
The wound on the tip of his rostrum is filled with healthy granulation
tissue and remains clean and free from secondary infection. The
more significant wounds seen at previous examinations again were examined.
The deep dorsal fin wound itself remains clean and
healed, and no pain response was elicited on palpating the area. The wounds
at the base of the dorsal fin and trailing edge of the
dorsal fin on the left-hand side continue to contract down and remain free
from significant secondary infection.
James Barnett
Director and vet, British Divers Marine Life Rescue
JO BERGHAN IS A NEW ZEALANDER
living at Paihia, Bay of Islands
Hi Wade What a difficult situation ! I¹m not sure what to suggest with
this dolphin it would seem there are several issues: his poor condition,
his aggressive behaviour with swimmers, and his movement between several
locations. With regard to his condition, maybe he is not foraging adequately
because of the human pressure from swimmers and boats, but it could just be
that he is old and at the end of his time, or suffering from some disease or
illness. Medical intervention should perhaps only be considered if the human
disturbance issue is addressed and no improvement is seen in his body
condition. In my experience with wild bottlenose dolphins in NE NZ, they
forage opportunistically and on a wide range of prey. Thus, allocating time
zones for him to rest and forage may be pointless. It would seem that the
only solution for both his safety and the public¹s safety is to keep
everyone out of the water. That way, injury to either party is minimized, he
will get bored without anyone to play with and go and forage (hopefully),
and habituation to human
contact is minimized. I don¹t believe that relocating the animal would be
the most prudent step at this point. Not only does the animal stand to be
placed under considerable stress both during the move, and afterwards when
finding himself in an alien environment, but he may no longer be able to
rejoin his own genetic population/social group. Recently a wild bottlenose
became solitary in the Hauraki Gulf and was interacting with vessels
regularly over a period of several months. Through photo-identification we
have clearly established that it rejoined a group of bottlenose dolphins.
Whether this is temporary or not, it clearly shows that solitaries may not
remain so forever. Without social stimulation from humans, Randy/Georges may
integrate back into his own conspecific
community. I think he should at least be given the chance to do so. Thus I
feel that at this point a robust education/control programme should be
initiated and trialed. It sounds like a great bunch of people with a wide
range of skills and experience are involved and I¹m sure they can put
together a well-run protection programme for the dolphin. In my experience,
nobody wants to hurt a dolphin most problems are just sheer ignorance.
Over the last nine years in the Bay of Islands, we have moved from vessels
doing high-speed Œdonuts¹ around dolphins and people leaping off boats on
top of them, to slow, controlled approaches and careful boat manouvering
all due to education and information. Once people know that they are
potentially harming the animals, they
become very responsive to learning how they can interact in a safe manner.
I¹m sure the same can be achieved for Randy/Georges. Unfortunately, dealing
with people is not always easy and many respond Œif the dolphin/s didn¹t
like it (human/boat contact) they would leave¹. I learnt the hard way on the
water during my time with DOC doing dolphin patrols that authorative don't
do this/don't do that approaches usually result in hostile, even aggressive,
responses. It¹s sounds like they are having the same sort of response to the
volunteers and I wonder if a new approach may be required I quickly learnt
to change my approach more towards. If you approach the dolphins like
this, you will get a better response from them¹ and spent a lot of time
telling people about the
dolphins¹ lives, behaviour, the vital daily functions they needed to carry
out, and social bonds THEN told them about how bad boat behaviour interfered
with that. Not once did I get a negative response to this type of approach,
but believe me, prior to that tack I was told where to go on many occasions.
This may sound like an odd suggestion, but perhaps they need somebody in the
coalition who can offer advice on HUMAN behaviour how to approach people,
how to deal with stroppy tourists etc. Anyway, I hope the dolphin will just
wander off and rejoin his own kind failing that, as un-PC as this may
sound, I hope he bites or slaps a dolphin harasser and then I¹m sure people
will realize that the coalition really are advocating leaving the dolphin
alone for a good reason:-).
Cheers Jo Berghan
MIKE BOSSLEY is an Australian
scientist in Adelaide
Hi Wade Thanks for forwarding Monica's email. Since Jock [solo
dolphin] days I have actually