Crawsnest (Tay Dolphins)

The Marine Connection launches a new report which examines the phenomenon of the solitary cetacean – the ‘Lone Rangers’ of the sea, in detail.

It examines some of the theories behind their existence, considers the process of habituation and the threats to both the cetacean and humans. By reviewing all known cases to date and the current protective legislation the report makes recommendations for their protection in both the short and long term.

Solitary cetaceans may be considered the lone rangers of the sea, apparently choosing a solitary existence they may roam from town to town, or conversely they may take up residence in one specific location.

We do not as yet fully understand their solitary lifestyle, whether it is by choice or through a variety of environmental or man-made pressures. Yet we do know that whether temporary or permanent there have been over 90 cases to date, worldwide.

Source:  Marine Connection

Download Lone Rangers report

Two men who swam in the sea with a dolphin after a night out have been found guilty of harassing the animal.

Michael Jukes, 27, and Daniel Buck, 26, were found guilty of intentionally or recklessly disturbing a wild animal at Sandgate, Kent in June last year.

Dover magistrates heard they had touched and stroked Dave the dolphin, which had become a tourist attraction spotted regularly near Folkestone.

They were each ordered to carry out 120 hours community service.

A lack of recent sightings has led to speculation that Dave, who was actually female, has now died.

The court heard that during the incident on 9 June a witness heard one of the men shout: “People pay hundreds of pounds to do this in Florida and I’m doing it in Folkestone.”

Full story:  BBC

Stronger legislation to protect “friendly” bottlenose dolphins from being “loved to death” is being urged by a leading conservation organisation.

The problem with existing measures aimed at preventing harm to or disturbance of these charismatic marine mammals is that they weren’t designed to deal with problems arising from exceptional individuals going out of their way to court human attention.
 
So the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society is highlighting how such creatures invariably end up with fatal injuries as a first step in a campaign for a new law to discourage people from responding to their overtures.

Bottlenose dolphins, averaging around three metres long and weighing about 200kgs, have long been at the centre of myths about relations with humans. Blowing away such mystical nonsense is part of the WDCS effort to protect them from becoming victims of their popularity.

Solitary-sociable” is how WDCS labels those that, for no obvious reason, are not part of a dolphin group and hang around harbours, increasingly associating with boat users, divers and bathers.

Social misfit would also be an appropriate description for an animal apparently preferring the company of a different species. It is not trying to deliver a message to mankind, one of the wackier theories for such behaviour - but performing in what invariably becomes a tragedy.

“There is a definite need for existing legislation to be improved to protect solitary-sociable dolphins”, said Mark Simmonds, WDCS’s Director of Science. “Law to prevent harm and deliberate or reckless disturbance to dolphins doesn’t adequately cater for situations in which one chooses to interact with people.”

WDCS has already tried to tackle this by simply giving a “back off” message to the public.

Full story:  Telegraph.co.uk

A man convicted of recklessly harassing a school of dolphins while on a jet ski has been fined £500.
 
Nicol Wood, 22, had earlier gone on trial over an incident with a school of bottlenose dolphins in the Moray Firth.

However, he then offered a plea at Banff Sheriff Court and the allegation that he intentionally disturbed the dolphins was deleted.

Wood, from Banff, is believed to be the first person convicted in Scotland for such an offence.

The offence - under the amended Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 - happened in coastal waters about half a mile offshore at Faw Bay, Macduff, in June last year.

Dave MacKinnon, a wildlife crime officer for Grampian Police who investigated the incident, said: “I believe this is the first time a successful conviction has been achieved under the amended legislation.

“The message that we want to get out is that this activity is an offence. These marine mammals are no different from other protected wildlife.

“In their marine environment they have to feed and look after their young.”

Mr MacKinnon said it was likely that they would have been disturbed in the incident and a key element of wildlife crime investigation was raising public awareness about animal welfare.

He said: “Hopefully the conclusion to this incident will send a strong message to people who use the marine environment for their work and leisure.

“What we ask is that people using such crafts do so in a responsible manner for their safety and that of others including protected wildlife.”

Source:  BBC

Pro’s and Cons….

The Crawsnest has been in discussions over the past few weeks with a number of agencies on the ‘pro’s and cons’ of shore-based watching and boat-based watching.

The most commonly quoted reason for going dolphin watching on a boat is to get closer to the dolphins, ie. to get a better view…  Although, on the whole, this is probably true, it does not take into account the welfare of the wild dolphins.  It is a purely selfish human motive.

The dolphins that enter the River Tay do so to feed.  The area that the dolphins are most commonly seen in is the edge of the deeper ’shipping channel’.  This is also the channel that the fish use on their journey up the Tay.  It also is the area most used by boats that wish to get ‘closer to the dolphins’.

We contend that to take boats into this area while the dolphins are feeding is an abuse of the dolphins.  It shows a complete disregard for their welfare and could in fact cause distress and alarm to these wild animals whilst in pursuit of the most natural of objectives, food!

Many of the behaviours that are oohed and aahed at by dolphin watchers in boats are in fact aggressive behaviours that are warning the boats to keep their distance.  A prime example of this is ‘tailslapping’ which can be seen anytime a boat enters the vicinity of dolphins feeding.

Once dolphins have completed feeding, they often go into a period of ‘resting’.  This is noticable in that they surface more frequently while travelling much slower through the water.  It is at this time that they are at their most vulnerable as they do not make deep dives as they are for all purposes ‘fast asleep’.  This puts them in danger from boats as they could easily be struck and injured by propellers while in this resting mode.

It is after a period of rest that the dolphins are most likely to put on the acrobatic displays that they are famous for…  However, there is no need to go out in boats to witness this kind of behaviour.  It is at this time that the dolphins are likely to spread out across the river and may be clearly seen from many vantage points along the shore. 

We witnessed an amazing display just 20 metres from the shoreline at Broughty Ferry beach.  The animals were breaching, porpoising and spyhopping much to the delight of the 100 or so people present on the beach.  All that ‘entertainment’ and it didn’t cost a penny, but most importantly, there was no detrimental effect on the dolphins as they were in their natural environment and we were in ours…

The Crawsnest would ask that you spare a thought for the welfare of these wild animals and watch them from the shore.  Please do not take boats out and disturb them…  Dolphins are wild animals.. We would like to see them stay that way…

Many Thanks…  Crawsnest Team

As a timely codocil…  Dolphin ‘hit by boat propeller’

A bottlenose dolphin that has been swimming off the Kent coast since last year has sustained injuries apparently from a boat propeller.  Swimmers and boats have recently been ignoring advice to keep away from her.

Full story: BBC

I’m afraid I have to report that the dolphins were on the wrong end of some behaviour which amounted to harrassment on Sunday afternoon…

While most boats were abiding by the dolphin-watching guidelines, there was one boat which consistently approached the dolphins with its engine running.  It was also observed to continually change direction heading back towards the dolphins every time they moved away.  The boat in question showed no regard for the fact that the dolphins were feeding in the area.  It was obvious that the 2 people on board were more interested in their own pleasure rather than the welfare of the animals.  Evidence of their engine running can be seen in the picture above, ie wake at the rear of the boat.

As you can also see from the pic above, the river was busy with all sorts of watercraft on Sunday, but the vast majority showed respect for the dolphins.  The MVS craft, Marigot and Badger were observing the guidelines, spending no more than 15 minutes with the dolphins.  Both boats were seen to cut their engines when in the dolphins vicinity and also to keep at a respectful distance.

There were also a number of jet-skis in the river, but they gave the dolphins a wide berth and did not cause any problems.  There were also a couple of high-powered speedboats which approached the dolphins at high speed, but they did cut their engines as they closed in.  The sail boats on the river were obviously more interested in their sailing than the dolphins as they were not seen to even approach the animals.

However, the behaviour shown by the occupants of the motor cruiser in question was unacceptable and pictorial evidence will be forwarded to the relevant authorities.  If anyone has any details on the boat or its occupants, please contact us…

A picture of the motor cruiser which was harrassing the dolphins in the River Tay.

This behaviour was witnessed by 3 researchers with the Crawsnest Wildlife Group.