06.09.2019 – The friendlies

One thing many people can agree on is that dolphins are incredibly charming creatures. Their upbeat swimming, their gleeful leaps, their nurturant social life, their permanent smiles…practically everything about them makes them seem like friendly, approachable creatures much in contrast to other marine animals who share less similarities to human beings, such as sharks. While dolphins are indeed friendly and approachable, our fascination for these animals has also prompted us to imprison them for our own personal entertainment. 

Despite the fact that the cruelty of captivity has become common knowledge, encounters with dolphins in pools and choreographed dolphin shows still command the fees of so many marine parks worldwide. Thankfully, things are gradually looking up for the poor, miserable animals within these enclosures. Documentaries like The Cove or Blackfish helped open the publics eyes to the true cost of captivity and several foundations, including Ric’O Barry’s Dolphin Project, have raised awareness on the subject, contributing to a widespread awareness that prompted the banning of captivity in several countries including Chile, Croatia, India, Slovenia, the U.K Luxembourg and Norway to name a few. In 2019 Canada then became the most recent nation to pass this legislation.

Of course research has also contributed to many countries banning this practice and establishing laws against such parks after scientists have documented the profound, complex behaviour of these animals over the past decades but we still are far from comprehending the intelligence of cetaceans. While these animals don’t give away their secrets easily, the curious and friendly Atlantic spotted dolphins (Stenella frontalis) often seek human contact in the water, making them easier to observe and document than other species. We had sightings with these lovely creatures on all our tours today and even met them in the water during this mornings snorkelling tour. Apart from showing our guests that close encounters with animals in the wild are possible while maintaining a responsible and respectful approach, each ticket on this tour is a donation to Ric O’ Barry’s dolphin project. So, while meeting these animals in the wild, you are also contributing to a foundation that is set on keeping them there.

One thing does become very evident with dolphins in the wild; they are so much more than friendly, approachable creatures. They are highly intelligent, have distinct personalities and lead a remarkable social life in a vast, beautiful habitat. I think we can all agree that it is time to end this dark age of captivity and grant these magnificent beings the respect they deserve. Instead of wasting money on dolphin shows, we should concentrate on keeping our oceans clean. One of the sightings today involved a Bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) playing with a piece of plastic. While this all seemed like fun and games, plastic can easily harm the animal. We should not only focus on keeping these animals in the ocean but also ensuring that they live in a healthy ocean.

By Paula Thake

Sightings of the day

Ribeira Brava

13:30 Atlantic spotted dolphins

Stenella

09:00 Atlantic spotted dolphins (Snorkeling)

15:30 Atlantic spotted dolphins

18:00 Atlantic spotted dolphins, Bottlenose dolphins