Dolphins In Paradise

Dolphin in the sky!

2011-12-09T15:41:00.000-08:00

This image, created by starlings and resembling a dolphin being chased by an open-mouthed whale, was caught on camera this week by amateur photographer Paul McGreevy in Gretna Green, Scotland.

Humpback Whale & Bottlenose Dolphin Playing

2011-11-15T09:39:00.001-08:00

I was observing a strange interaction between a pair of bottlenose dolphins and a humpback whale, when it became apparent that the two species were collaborating in some way. The dolphin was lying on a humpback whale’s head while it was slowly swimming along. Looking through my camera lens the stunt appeared to be orchestrated by mutual “agreement.” The whale very slowly—and vertically—lifted the dolphin into the air. I expected the dolphin to wriggle atop the humpback’s head to get off, but it just laid still and arched, trying to stay on top of the whale’s snout. In this frame the dolphin was beginning its slippery return to the sea. Once back in the ocean, the dolphin swiftly swam away with the other dolphin, leaping joyfully as if they had just scored a coup!

—Lori Mazzuca, Kailua Kona, HI

Canon EOS 10D; 70-200mm lens with 1.4x extender; digital capture

Saving Valentina, a Humpback Whale - 2011

2011-07-07T09:04:00.000-07:00

This video shows the remarkable footage of a humpback whale being rescued from the severely entangled lines of a fishing net in the Sea of Cortez. Narration is by Michael Fishback who, along with Gershon Cohen, founded the The Great Whale Conservancy to help protect whales.

Dolphin Song by Olivia Newton-John

2011-04-27T11:46:00.002-07:00

The Promise

See them play in the moonlight
Watch them dance in the sun
They're the children of freedom—every one
As they care for each other
With no question or cause
They deserve to be treasured as a source of love
In their minds there are answers
And in time we will know
What the truth is about all we don't know
They have no room for hatred
Though they've suffered much pain
From the race we call human—who are afraid of love
If I can only help to right a wrong
With my dolphin song
Then I'll have done what I set out to do
If I can only make one man aware
One person care
Then I'll have done what I promised you
Let us hope it's not too late
And that we can amend
All the pain we have suffered on a friend
We were born with our freedom
Oh we were born with the truth
Then why do we abuse it
We could choose—to love, to love

A Cat Playing with a Dolphin

2011-04-26T18:50:00.000-07:00

A cat gets to meet a dolphin! (Click on title to see video.)

A Seal Snuggles with a Woman Tourist on the Beach

2011-04-03T10:31:00.000-07:00

This seal apparently seems to "fall in love" with a tourist sitting on a beach in Gold Harbor, South Georgia located off the southern tip of South America. (Click on the title to see video.)

Winter — Tailless Dolphin Gets New Tail

2011-01-30T14:40:00.000-08:00

In my recent visit to FL, I also visited the Clearwater Marine Aquarium, a marine mammal rescue center, that is currently home to a tailless dolphin named Winter. While we were there, we witnessed her being fitted with a new prosthetic tail. Winter was found as a baby by a fisherman in the month of December (hence her name). She had gotten tangled up in the lines of a crab trap cutting off the circulation in her tail. After her rescue the tail gradually fell off.

She has learned to swim without it, swimming more with the side-to-side movement of a shark and using her flippers to get moving. During her fitting she rested quietly on a submerged underwater platform.

Winter has recently acquired deva status when she starred in a movie called Dolphin Tale, along with Morgan Freeman. The movie is due to be released in the fall of 2011.

Swimming with Manatees

2011-01-30T13:53:00.000-08:00

The West Indian manatee of Florida frequently migrates up rivers and brackish water estuaries to freshwater springs. We found a large number of them congregating in the warmer spring water of Kings Bay near the end of Crystal River in FL, about an hour and a half driving time north of Tampa.

An adult manatee is anywhere between 10 and 12 feet long and weighs up to 4,000 lbs. Using a large flexible upper lip, they feast primarily on mangrove leaves, turtle grass and various types of algae. With their thick, wrinkled skin and soft bodies, it is believed that their closest living relative is the elephant. They have a large, flat paddle-like tail.

Most of their time is spent sleeping, surfacing for air at intervals of about 20 minutes. We saw many of them quietly lying on the bottom. They are generally slow moving and somewhat timid but a several of them seemed to enjoy being scratched underneath their chins. One of the babies actually gave me a big kiss on my scuba mask.

Porpoises again spotted in San Franciso Bay

2011-01-22T16:57:00.001-08:00

A private team of researchers are observing the movements of more and more porpoises as they make their under the Golden Gate Bridge and into the bay. It seems they are following their prey but once inside may be intrigued by the large amount of crab and other fish that seem to be present these days. The porpoises, who can live up to 12 years, are a good sign of the overall health of the bay—positive news in a time of pessimism over other environmental calamaties.

Humpback Thanks Rescuer

2010-11-23T18:22:00.000-08:00

A female humpback "thanks" a diver after a group of environmentalists worked for hours to free a whale tangled in a web of crab pots and hundreds of yards of line off the Farallon Islands outside San Francisco.

The caption of the photo which was e-mailed to me reads:
"May you, and all those you love, be so blessed and fortunate to be surrounded by people who will help you get untangled from the things that are binding you."

Porpoises in the Bay

2010-11-10T10:05:00.001-08:00

Harbor porpoises have recently been sighted back in San Francisco Bay. For the last 65 years these shy and elusive marine mammals have rarely been found inside Golden Gate Bridge. Marine biologists are wondering what ecological changes are occurring that would account for their increase in numbers.

They have been seen from atop a bluff at Cavallo Point and have also been sighted in Racoon Strait between Tiburon and Angel Island.

Dog Meets Dolphin

2010-11-10T09:54:00.000-08:00

Paya and Ritchie

2010-09-21T14:05:00.000-07:00

Paya and Ritchie follow along side of a boat off the island of Roatan (from one of the recent 2010 Dolphin Adventure Trips).

Labrador Swims with Dolphin

2010-08-26T13:07:00.000-07:00

On most days a wild bottlenose dolphin who the locals have named Dougie swims with the Tory island hotel owner's dog Ben. Tory is off the southwest coast of Donegal in Ireland.

Baby Pink Dolphin Rescued

2010-08-25T13:35:00.000-07:00

After being rescued, a baby pink dolphin is taken care by biologists at the Pailas river in Santa Cruz, Bolivia on Monday. Biologists and environmental activists are trying to rescue dolphins trapped in early July in the Pailas river, a tributary of the Rio Grande river, north of the city of Santa Cruz, when drought caused water levels to drop. (AP Photo)

Looks ancient, very wise for a baby!

Blue Whales in Monterey

2010-08-07T11:02:00.000-07:00

I spent last weekend on a whale watching boat out of Monterey Bay, CA. First off — what a spectacular drive down the coast even though we hit some summer traffic in a few places! We reached our destination just in time to catch a 5:30 cruise leaving from Fisherman's Wharf (you need to book ahead).

Apparently, an abundance of krill (tiny shrimp) has been appearing off shore, drawing huge numbers of whales — both humpbacks and blue whales. Researchers say that the whales seem to have used their long distance communication skills to summon other whales. This is the largest concentration of blue whales in this area in a decade.

What a thrill to see the gigantic spouts of the blues and their long, smooth torsos rising out of the sea. We saw quite a few humpbacks as well, some of them "singing" (like excited elephants!) as they rode through the waves.

Below is my best video of two humpbacks:

Back in the harbor and along shore we continued to feel like we were in a marine mammal wonderland with sea otters floating among the boats and throngs of sea lions and harbor seals lounging on the rocks and beaches.

There's a feeling of shared community with so many animals around. Instead of a lot of noisy boat traffic, a few sailboats dotted the bay while small groups of kayakers paddled through islands of floating kelp. There were also a number of scuba divers in the water.

There's a calm, Meditarrean feel to the town with cafes and bistros along the waterfront and people just enjoying the scene.

Ray Sighting

2010-05-26T18:47:00.000-07:00

I saw the little ray again today, and it's my birthday. He was swimming around in the same area where I'd seen him before, probably foraging off the bottom. I'd thought he'd continued to move up along the shoreline, but he seems to be making an extended stay.

It's a Shark! No, It's a . . .

2010-05-21T08:16:00.000-07:00

The other evening I was walking with my partner along the bay in Marin County here in California. We are lucky to live a 1-minute walk from a long path that travels right along the water's edge. In one direction you see Mt. Tamalpais. If you look in the other way, you can see the Richmond Bridge. When the tide is out, a large expanse of muddy bottom is exposed studded with craggy rocks. Today the tide was in. Suddenly, Lex said, "There's a small shark!" Close to the bank rippling across the surface was what appeared to be a small, floppy dorsal fin. Then we saw two. "Maybe it's a mom and her baby," I said. But as we watched, we could see both "fins" rise and fall together equidistant apart. "It's a ray," said Lex. "It must be feeding." The "fins" disappeared, and a long, whip-thin tail waved near the long grass. We watched its undulating movements for awhile before continuing with our walk.

Since then, I've googled rays in California, and I suspect that this was a bat ray because of the pointed "wings" and the very thin tail. Apparently, they feed on clams and shrimp and other crustaceans. Their stinger can inflict some very painful wounds, but is used only in self-defense. They are not by nature an aggressive animal. It's best not to accidently step on them.

Follow this Blog

2010-05-13T16:07:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Dolphins in Paradise blog—another adventure! When time permits and inspiration strikes, I will try to add newsworthy notes and "ah ha's." First, bookmark this page! To write comments for any of the postings, click on a post title. To find archived posts check out the "Blog Archive" at the bottom of the sidebar. To become a fan of this blog click on "Followers" below the Blog Archive. If you elect to follow the blog publicly, your profile picture will be displayed. You can also do a "search" for topics, and you will be shown a list of related links in the posts, and also a "See These Links" tab which shows links to other sites. That's it! Enjoy. . .

Gray whale sighted off Israel

2010-05-12T21:46:00.000-07:00

I was forwarded a bit of news today: A gray whale has apparently found its way through the arctic ice in the Northwest Passage near the Bering Strait to the Atlantic ocean. It then migrated south and eventually turned left into the Mediterranean ending up off the shores of Israel instead of the southern tip of Baja. Gray whales have not been seen in the Atlantic for over 200 hundred years! According to scientists it should be able to survive because there is plenty of food here. The question is whether this could be the beginning of a new migration pattern or re-colonisation of the Atlantic. This is another side effect of the climate changes our planet is going through. Interesting where a wrong turn can take you.