Intelligent, highly perceptive, and adorable – dolphins are one of the few animals that humans can sincerely say this about. The qualities that they have as a species are remarkable and their ability to pick up on new stimuli is fascinating. However, some scattered reports suggest they are, in fact, dangerous sea creatures.
By Sarah Neary, The practice of swimming with dolphins has been on the rise in recent years, but participants can’t just dive right in and mingle with the sea mammals. They are always supervised in the presence of a trainer. Since the dolphin doesn’t know the visitor in this scenario, these dolphins in captivity could retaliate out of fright. “They don’t cut your skin, they don’t draw blood, but they just give you a good strong pressure on the foot or on the leg with their teeth to let you know that they are not happy with the fact that they don’t recognize you,” said Larry Schaefer, who worked with dolphins at the Mirage for over two years as an educator and a VIP tour guide in the dolphin establishment. This type of behavior in dolphins is said to be perfectly natural. As well, more so than usual, people have good experiences in the water with these savvy swimmers. “The safety record of interactive programs offered by Alliance-accredited facilities is a phenomenal 99.99% safe because of the wonderful relationship our trainers have with the animals and their outstanding training of the dolphins,” said Marilee Menard, Executive Director of the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums. The newest craze seems to be combining yoga with dolphins. Specialized places especially for dolphins and aquariums devoted to such have latched onto the opportunity of reinforcing people’s peace of mind with yoga and strengthening it with the serenity of a dolphin to add to their guided pleasure. This is all through the help of a trainer, who walks each person through the process. “Our facilities have education programs prior to interactions with dolphins to assure that the guests behave properly with the animals,” said Menard. Though, it is not known if Alliance facilities have this yoga-dolphin occurrence going on at their centers now or in the future. Dolphin enthusiasts who may not have the cash on hand for this unique encounter should be forewarned. In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, feeding or even trying to feed a dolphin is a crime in US waters. “You have to remain at least 50 feet away from wild dolphins and you’re not allowed to approach them, attempt to feed them, or swim with them. You can be caught and it’s quite a fine,” said Schaefer. Why such harsh regulations are put in place is easy to see. If people continually feed a wild dolphin, especially a young one, they may lose the ability to hunt on their own, potentially causing them to starve to death. As it has been said time and time again that dolphins are not aggressive by nature, one report raises questions. According to the NOAA Fisheries Office of Protected Resources’ website, wild dolphins bit a woman. The woman had reportedly fed them and then jumped in the water. To make matters worse, she is not the only case. Dolphins under the correct amount of supervision, whether through swimming or a yoga-related activity, may behave a lot better than those in their natural habitat. However, the facts still remain. Staying a good distance away from wild animals, including dolphins, is wise, because we never know what they may be capable of. Source: Voice of Russia