Dolphins – cute “smile”, sleek body, perfect swimmers, charming behaviour – it’s difficult not to love them, not to feel an instant attraction – the aura that surrounds them is one which stirs up deep feelings in many.

An animal revered in many societies, the dolphin’s image was, and still is, linked to human notions of intelligence, kindness and friendliness – attributes we seek so often in our human counterparts. Many stories, dating back even to Greek mythology, recount how these kind creatures often helped mariners in peril – indeed a welcome sight in otherwise treacherous waters. A constellation in the night sky was also dedicated to delphinus.

“To the dolphin alone nature has given that which the best philosophers seek: friendship for no advantage. Though it has no need of help of any man, yet it is a genial friend to all, and has helped man.” (Plutarch)

The Boto – a river dolphin inhabiting the rivers of the Amazon – is partly protected as it is considered an abomination to cause it any harm since it is believed to have the ability to change into human form.

The image of the dolphin has been used so often it must have rendered many a millionaire what with countless souvenirs, posters, greeting cards, logos etc. being mass marketed all over the globe. Locally, beach towels, tee shirts, caps – the dolphin features in all – though it is no longer so commonly seen in our waters. There is no doubt about it – dolphins are crowd pullers, they are always en vogue and ever so popular. It is an animal that is respected and loved. But there lies a thin line between love and abuse, between misinformation and proper education.

Intelligent roamers

of the sea

Research by the US National Science Foundation has shown that dolphin brains are highly encephalised – that is they have very large brains when compared to their size – a measure which is not so far from the equivalent of the human ratio. It has also been demonstrated that a wide variety of behavioural abilities of dolphins include “mirror self-recognition, the comprehension of artificial, symbol-based communication systems and abstract concepts, and the learning and intergenerational transmission of behaviors that have been described as cultural” (source: http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/507971/?sc=wire). The possibility of the use of tools is also a new and exciting discovery which continues to illustrate the highly evolved brains of such animals.

Dolphins – life in the wild

Despite the many attempts at mis-education undertaken by dolphinaria – a dolphin’s home can only be the vast sea. No other habitat replacement can ever even get close to re-creating a similar environment with all the diverse features of the sea, the freedom and, yes, the everyday survival battle. Dolphins have evolved and adapted to such a marine environment and it is up to us to ensure that the seas are freed of human threats rather than taking them into captivity upon the poor pretext that the sea is full of dangers!

Dolphins – dying to entertain you?

The devotees of dolphins often claim that they are special, mystic creatures – but some feel the necessity to take it a step further and support entertainment businesses that have been capitalising on this feeling for decades. As the saying goes “if you love someone, set them free” – it is an anomalous situation where many dolphin lovers actually support the cruel industry which is causing so much suffering and losses to the dolphin community. If you claim to love dolphins then visiting a dolphinarium is certainly not the way to show it!

Dolphins have been recognised as being highly sociable animals living in complex groups and families – recent findings clearly show that such groups often have a key member that leads and ensures the cohesion, and thus the survival, of the rest of the group. The taking of dolphins from the wild to supply dolphinaria for their entertainment shows is a major threat to dolphin survival – the hunts for dolphins are merciless and cause havoc among groups often ending up in bloody massacres where many suffer trauma, injury or die during the process.

Denied their basic needs by being held captive and forced to perform, the revered creature is turned into nothing more than a clown in a circus act

Is there any tank that is large enough? No. Some of the larger tanks existing to date still are some 700 times smaller than a dolphin’s daily swim range. Dolphins are protected locally in the wild – but not so much so in captivity where they face a life of boredom which often drives them into depressed or violent behaviour.

“No aquarium, no tank in a marineland, however spacious it may be, can begin to duplicate the conditions of the sea. And no dolphin who inhabits one of those aquariums or one of those marinelands can be considered normal... It is certain that the study of human psychology, if it were undertaken exclusively in prisons, would also lead to misrepresentation and absurd generalisations.” (Jacques Cousteau)

The joy, or otherwise, of seeing a dolphin

It always was my dream to see a dolphin at close range. But I never expected the deep sadness that accompanied me throughout and for a long time after my visit a few years ago, as a volunteer of marine Life Care Group (now Nature Trust) to assess the situation of dolphins kept in captivity locally.

Four Black Sea Bottlenose dolphins were brought over and kept in a miserable, filthy and shallow pool. Their fins stuck out of the water and their eyes mirrored the sadness of it all – such a majestic, powerful creature locked in a concrete prison in the basking sun. This was not what I had wanted to experience.

It left a mark on me to this day. Bhudvan, Kvitcha, Pega, Chigra are just names now as all seem to have died.

The true joy, however, came along on the various lucky encounters of groups of wild common and bottlenose dolphins while at sea. Dolphins may not be so conspicuous but they still are found in our waters – they can even be sighted during the ferry crossing between the islands. The fleeting moment, when everything happens so quickly and you are cursing yourself for not having a camera, lives on in the memory and can never be compared to seeing a dolphin caged in and made to perform unnatural tricks.

Dolphins should be appreciated from a distance… and with no strings attached.

Useful information:

Nature Trust forms part of CETFREE – a coalition of local and international NGO’s committed to educating and creating awareness on the plight of captive dolphins www.cetfree.org (still under construction) email: [email protected].

Annalise Falzon is CETFREE’s campaign co-ordinator.

Nature Trust’s voluntary professional Marine Rescue Team can be contacted on 99422085/6 in case of injured or stranded dolphins and turtles. Such animals are protected by law and special permits are required for handling them.

Nature trust also collects information on sightings around the Maltese Islands – email: [email protected] or [email protected].

Contact Nature Trust on www.naturetrustmalta.org, fax 0035621313150, email [email protected] or Nature Trust Malta, PO Box 9, Valletta, CMR 01.

Annalise Falzon is on Nature Trust's Conservation Committee

Dolphins

Fast swimmers: their streamlined, muscular and smooth body allows for speeds of up to 40 km/hour

Weathered travellers: they often cover up to 40 miles a day – they are on the go all the time!

Deep sea divers: dolphins can hold their breath for several minutes and can dive down to 300m

Great acrobats: dolphins are playful animals – they love speed, performing acrobatic leaps and bow-riding

Excellent communicators: dolphins produce two types of sounds – clicking sounds used for echolocation – to locate food, obstacles; and high pitched whistles to communicate states of alarm or excitement and to identify each other

Essentially wild animals: dolphins travel great distances every day