Bottlenose dolphins in Ochos Rios

        The well-loved Dolphins (Delphinus Delphis).  They are intelligent, inquisitive, friendly, highly trainable, ideal performers… and the list goes on.  But alleged reports dating as far back as 190AD about humans being selflessly rescued by dolphins from drowning and shark attacks have raised questions as to whether dolphins are able to feel and do more than we think.  Are dolphins truly capable of these acts of courage and compassion? Or are this simply acts of playfulness, or reflex responses to certain cues?  And if they are indeed capable of altruism, what motivates them to, and how do they know what they should do?   The reason for my interest in this subject lies in the prospect that should the secret to this amazing behaviour be unlocked, the way the scientific world sees dolphins could be altered like never before, and this may be the dawning of a new era in animal behavioural science.  No longer will dolphin rescues be considered animorphomistic observations, but factual scientific accounts!

            In the late morning of August 28 2007, at Marina State Park in Monterrey, California, a 24 year old Marine Aquarium Services owner Todd Endris was allegedly attacked by a shark “estimated at 12 to 15 feet long” while surfing, peeling a chunk of skin off his back and attempting to attack his right leg.  But when the shark returned for its third attack, “the dolphins which had been cavorting in the surf all along, showed up then.  They circled him, kept the shark at bay and allowed Endris to get back on his board and catch a wave back to shore”, saving him from a gruesome death. (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21689083/#storyContinued) (Watch the following clip for interview)

            This is but one of the many similar accounts over the years of dolphins coming to the timely rescue of drowning swimmers, shark attack victims, shipwrecked sailors, and distressed divers.  All these instances have led to a popular belief that dolphins are capable of sensing distress in humans and even other species and render the necessary assistance.  However these same instances have raised scientific eyebrows as to whether these acts really were born out of an understanding that the humans needed help or just animorphormistic descriptions of the accounts.  Compelling and commonplace as these incidents have been, the evidence has not been conclusive and there still leaves room for more scientific explanation.

            Firstly, many of these instances only have the victim as its sole witness, and third parties are often unable to decipher the actual happenings.  Like in the Todd Endris shark attack, by the time his friend got to him he was already near the shore and no one else saw the shark and dolphins.  Furthermore, then in a state of shock, high adrenaline and unable to clearly see what was happening amidst the frenzy, Endris’ may not have been able to give an accurate account.  The same may be said for a similar attack in the Red Sea in 1996 on a novice diver Martin Richardson, when he nearly lost his life to a mako shark if not for the timely intervention of dolphins which reportedly raced toward the scene and somehow drove it away.  Although this story was recounted by a third party, Martin’s friend who was then observing from the boat, he was unable to see exactly what happened amidst the turbulent blood-stained water.  Whether the dolphins did come between Martin and the shark, or simply distracted it still remains a question mark.

            Secondly, there also is the possibility that these rescues were acts of playfulness or instinctive responses to certain cues.  For example, just as dolphins are likely to push people back to shore, they are also known to push them out to sea.  It is highly plausible that dolphins interpret our distressed behaviour as invitations to play, and that their responses coincidentally get us out of trouble!

            Thirdly, scientists have also argued that dolphins engage in such defensive behaviour towards humans either because they see humans in that situation as their own kind and see the need to protect us, or that they are protecting their young from the threat.

            Fourthly, there are doubts as to whether all dolphins behave the same way, seeing that the majority of dolphin rescue cases involve only the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops Truncatus).

            These areas have remained a few of the major sources of contention in this field, until recent scientific breakthroughs in the study of the dolphin brain, dynamics of socialization and communication, accompanied by an extraordinary incident in 2004, New Zealand.

            This incident not only provides infallible evidence that dolphins are not only able to interpret human distress cues as they are but also willing to put themselves at risk to defend humans as their own kind.  The incident took place along Ocean Beach near a town called Whangarei on the North Island of New Zealand on October 30 2004 when seasoned coastal lifeguard Rob Howes together with his daughter and 2 junior female lifeguards were approached by and shortly after tightly encircled by a group of bottlenose dolphins.  The dolphins swam swiftly and aggressively around them but never making physical contact with the group.  Howes having swum with dolphins before, noted the oddness of their behaviour and at the opportune moment, broke away from the circle with one of the girls to see what was really happening.  To his horror, he saw a massive 4 metre-long Great White Shark within metres of him and the girls, but just as the shark approached him, a single dolphin swam over at top speed and diverted the shark.  Howes then watched helplessly as the shark returned to the 2 girls still surrounded by the dolphins.  At this point however, the dolphins began to slap their fins violently, keeping the shark away from them.  Finally, after a good 45 minute “ordeal”, both shark and dolphins left, and the group returned to safety on land.  This face off with the shark was also observed first hand by Matt Fleet, the lifeguard on duty who had jumped in to join the group. (http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2004/nov/24/internationalnews) (Watch following clip for detailed account)

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            This encounter has provided more definite answers to this phenomenon of dolphin rescue and remains unrivalled in terms of credibility as well as accuracy.  For one, incident happened to a group of swimmers, who all gave identical descriptions the dolphins’ actions.  Secondly, the predator was witnessed by 2 people, and thirdly the slapping of tails in defense coincided with the shark approaching as observed by Howes who was then not  the object of attack.  Finally the entire experienced lasted a good 45 minutes which allowed for close up and detailed observation by Howes and the girls.  All these factors minimize the potential bias in the accounts, and are therefore all the more credible.

            These observations were further affirmed by long-time dolphin researchers like Professor Janet Mann of Georgetown University who confirms that the tail-slapping motion performed by dolphins are both percussive and a visual display of might in response to either an oncoming shark or aggressive male dolphin in the area.  Furthermore the fact that the dolphins had formed a tight barrier between the humans and the shark revealed that they were not just protecting themselves, but also the humans.

 Swimming with the Dolphins          

 As to how dolphins might have been able to tell that humans are in danger or in need of help, recent research has proven that dolphins are social mammals and engage in active learning to survive as opposed to relying largely on instincts.  This is seen the early nursing stage of a young dolphin’s life when it learns to mimic its mother’s foraging and social behaviour.  Hence, due to increased exposure to humans over the past few decades might have allowed dolphins to observe human behaviour and understand them.  Research has also shown that dolphins are able to mimic human sounds and that they themselves have their own language of communication (Catton, 1995), which enables them to map certain sounds humans make to behaviour and also, communicate specific messages to specific dolphins when rescue is needed.

               In addition, most dolphin rescues took place in regions where dolphins had frequently been exposed to human presence, hence allowing a rapport to build and an opportunity for them to learn about human behaviour.  One classic example was when a drowning boy was taken back to his boat by a dolphin, Filippo who has had frequent interaction with humans. (http://www.eurocbc.org/page158.html)  Hence, it would be unwise to expect any wild dolphin to appear each time you find yourself in danger at sea.  Several factors need to be in place first.

            Also, with regard to whether dolphins act instinctively or based on pheromone detections, an experiment where a man pretended to struggle in a dolphin tank and was brought to the side by the dolphin.  This dolphin’s response was based purely on what it saw and interpreted as distress.

            And with regard to whether such behaviour is characteristic of dolphins, the very fact that different species of dolphin communicate, breed, feed, move around, play and learn in the same way, it is likely that such behaviour is possible in other breeds.  One explanation for the high involvement of bottlenose dolphins could be that these incidents commonly occur in beaches frequented by bottlenose dolphins.

            Of all these discoveries, one of the most enlightening and conclusive would be the likelihood that dolphins are self-aware.  Research by Professor Lori Marino of Emory University has indicated that apart from the dolphins, in particular the bottlenose dolphins having second largest brain size after humans, “the part of our brain that governs our emotions are also highly developed in dolphins”. This means that dolphins are likely to be aware of their own thoughts and emotions as well as that of other species, hence enabling them to sense danger amongst their own kind as well as in others.  This discovery was further backed by another New Zealand account of a female dolphin Moko, on March 13 2008, coming to the rescue of 2 beached pygmy sperm whales and guiding them out of danger into deeper waters. (View clip for news report)  Such an account reveals that dolphins are in fact able to sense distress not only in humans but other animal species.

            Having established that dolphins are capable of rescuing us, the next question to ask would be, WHY?  Possible theories have included kin (nepotistic) altruism and reciprocal altruism.  Kin altruism, which opines that we benefit from protecting those whom we share similar genetic data with so as to ensure the replication of those genes, is clearly not a convincing explanation given that dolphins only share 3 similar genes with humans.(http://soundingcircle.com/newslog2.php/__show_article/_a000195-000172.htm)   For reciprocal altruism to take place on the other hand, organisms must be able to identify each other individually so that proper reciprocity can take place.  This is not the case for humans who only have limited contact with dolphins.  Furthermore, if reciprocal altruism is based on returning a favour for favour, given the way numerous dolphins are killed either for meat or by fisherman to snuff out competition each year, it’s a wonder that they are not launching massive counter-attacks against us.

            Sadly therefore, the exact motivation behind dolphins’ rescues still remains very much a mystery.  We can only hope for more evidence in the coming years that might draw us closer to the truth.  For now though, one thing we can now say with greater certainty, is that if you are basking in the cool waters of highly frequented dolphin cove, it is comforting to know that formidable as the dangers of the deep may be, so are our playful “guardians” that frolic around the corner.     

Bottlenose dolphins at Sunset in the Caribbean, Honduras

References:

“Dolphins”, Chris Catton, 1995, Boxtree Limited Publishing

“Wild Ways: Field Guide to the Behaviour of Southern African Mammals”, Peter Apps, 2000, Struik Publications.

“Marine Mammals of India”,  Kumaran Sathasivam, 2004, Orient Longman Publications.

“Dolphins save surfer from becoming shark’s bait”, by Mike Celizic, TODAYShow.com, November 8 2007.

"Dolphins save swimmers from shark", by Sam Jones, The Guardian, Wednesday, November 24 2004.

“How Moko the dolphin gave humans a masterclass in saving stranded whales”, by Jack Malvern, The Times, March 13 2008.

“Whales and Dolphins show distinctive human traits”, by Michael McCarthy, The New Zealand Herald, March 20 2008.

“Human Genes closer to dolphins than any land animals”, by Seema Kumar, Discovery Channel Online News, May 19 2003.