Pretty cool. Dolphin rescues stranded whales WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) -- A dolphin swam up to two distressed whales that appeared headed for death in a beach stranding in New Zealand and guided them to safety, witnesses said Wednesday. The actions of the bottlenose dolphin -- named Moko by residents who said it spends much of its time swimming playfully with humans at the beach -- amazed would-be rescuers and an expert who said they were evidence of the species' friendly nature. The two pygmy sperm whales, a mother and her calf, were found stranded on Mahia Beach, about 500 kilometers (300 miles) northeast of the capital of Wellington, on Monday morning, said Conservation Department worker Malcolm Smith. Rescuers worked for more than one hour to get the whales back into the water, only to see them strand themselves four times on a sandbar slightly out to sea. It looked likely the whales would have to be euthanized to prevent them suffering a prolonged death, Smith said. "They kept getting disorientated and stranding again," said Smith, who was among the rescuers. "They obviously couldn't find their way back past (the sandbar) to the sea." Along came Moko, who approached the whales and led them 200 meters (yards) along the beach and through a channel out to the open sea. Watch how dolphin became a hero ยป "Moko just came flying through the water and pushed in between us and the whales," Juanita Symes, another rescuer, told The Associated Press. "She got them to head toward the hill, where the channel is. It was an amazing experience. The best day of my life." Anton van Helden, a marine mammals expert at New Zealand's national museum, Te Papa Tongarewa, said the reports of Moko's rescue were "fantastic" but believable because the dolphins have "a great capacity for altruistic activities." These included evidence of dolphins protecting people lost at sea, and their playfulness with other animals. "We've seen bottlenose dolphins getting lifted up on the noses of humpback whales and getting flicked out of the water just for fun," van Helden said. "But it's the first time I've heard of an inter-species refloating technique. I think that's wonderful," said van Helden, who was not involved in the rescue but spoke afterward to Smith. Smith speculated that Moko responded after hearing the whales' distress calls. "It was looking like it was going to be a bad outcome for the whales ... then Moko just came along and fixed it," he said. "They had arched their backs and were calling to one another, but as soon as the dolphin turned up they submerged into the water and followed her." After the rescue, Moko returned to the beach and joined in games with local residents, he said. http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/12/nz.whales.ap/index.html?eref=rss_latest#cnnSTCVideo
Wow; wasn't cool enough before? They think they may have communicated. Dolphin Rescues Stranded Whales David Brooks, AFP e-mail share bookmark print Stranded? Try Me March 12, 2008 -- A dolphin guided two stranded whales to safety after human attempts to keep the animals off a New Zealand beach failed, a conservation official said Wednesday. "I've never heard of anything like this before, it was amazing," Conservation Department officer Malcolm Smith said. The actions of the dolphin, well known locally for playing with swimmers at Mahia beach on the east coast of the North Island, probably meant the difference between life and death for the whales, Smith said. Smith had been working for over an hour and a half to save the two pygmy sperm whales which had repeatedly become stranded despite his attempts to push them back out to sea. A bottlenose dolphin, named Moko by locals, appeared and guided the whales to safety after apparently communicating with them, Smith said. The whales, a 10-foot female and her male calf, were apparently confused by a sandbar just off the beach and could not find their way back to open water. Smith had been alerted at daybreak on Monday by a neighbor about the two stranded whales on Mahia beach near his home. "Over the next hour and a half I pushed them back out to sea two or three times and they were very reluctant to move offshore," Smith said. "I was starting to get cold and wet and they were becoming tired. I was reaching the stage where I was thinking it's about time to give up here, I've done as much as I can." In that situation, whales are often humanely killed to end their suffering Smith said Moko arrived on the scene and he could hear the whales and the dolphin making noises, apparently to one another. "The whales made contact with the dolphin and she basically escorted them about 200 yards parallel with the beach to the edge of the sandbar. "Then she did a right-angle turn through quite a narrow channel and escorted them out to sea. "There's been no sign of the whales since Monday, they haven't re-stranded." "What the communication was I do not know, and I was not aware dolphins could communicate with pygmy sperm whales, but something happened that allowed Moko to guide those two whales to safety." Moko has become famous for her antics at Mahia, which include playing in the surf with swimmers, approaching boats to be patted and pushing kayaks through the water with her snout. Such close interaction with humans is rare among dolphins but not unknown. "She's become isolated from her pod obviously for one reason or another, but obviously made Mahia home just at the moment." Mahia gets up to 30 whale strandings a year, most of which end with the whales having to be put down. "I don't know if next time we have a whale stranding we can get her to come in again. She certainly saved the day for us and the whales this time." http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2008/03/12/dolphin-whale-rescue.html
The Japanese press should run this story. I will never accept the brutal massacre of dolphins by the Japanese as simply some cultural nuance.
Greatest story ever. I love dolphins. Does MoesTavern hate dolphins as much as he hates dogs? Just curious.
