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DolphinWorld.org Newsletter

!	Dolphin Species Could Die Out Says Expert

New Zealand is at risk of being the first country to drive a dolphin species to extinction, says the World Wildlife Fund after the discovery of a second dead Hector's dolphin within 48 hours.

The butchered carcass of a Hector's dolphin was found on Monday, and another dolphin was found stranded on Tuesday, both in Kaikoura.

World Wildlife Fund New Zealand conservation director Chris Howe called on the Government to urgently introduce "long overdue" measures to protect the species.

While autopsies had not been completed, a high number of dolphin deaths in recent years had been the result of fishing-related activity, he said.

"The first carcass has the telltale signs of being a fishing-related death, as it has been reported in the past that drowned dolphins have been cut from nets hoping they will sink," he said.

Department of Conservation officials said the dolphin had net marks around its head, and it was not yet known whether it was already dead when it was hacked in half with a knife.

Yesterday, DoC staff examined a second dead dolphin on Mangamanu Beach, north of Kaikoura township.

DoC Kaikoura field centre supervisor Mike Morrissey said it appeared this dolphin, too, had drowned in a net.

The male dolphin, in "really good condition", was probably caught on Tuesday night or early yesterday.
Both bodies had been sent to Massey University to undergo autopsies.

Mr Howe said there was an urgent need for a species recovery plan that addressed all threats to the Hector's dolphin and to its critically endangered sub-species, Maui's dolphin, of which fewer than 100 remain.

Fishing, marine farming, pollution, recreational boating and genetic isolation of local populations, were all taking their toll on the fragile mammal.

"We urge the Government to formulate and implement a recovery plan to address threats to both Hector's and Maui's dolphins nationally. Otherwise we could be at risk of being the first country to drive a dolphin species to extinction," Mr Howe said.

Mr Morrissey said there were only about 1800 Hector's dolphins left in the South Island.

"Any further reduction in the population puts the future of the whole species in jeopardy.".

Dolphin World Florida Keys Workshop Programs
1 through 4 day workshop programs, which can include, dolphin swim, wild dolphin encounter, waist deep dolphin encounter, sea lion swim, sting ray swim, ocean reef snorkel trip, and local environmental boat tour.
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Research Suggests Higher Mammals Able to Think About Thinking

It's an easy test, and one that any parent can administer. Cut a banana in two pieces and ask a hungry 5-year-old to eat one piece. The child snatches the biggest one. But cut the banana in "half," and the decision comes more slowly. The child's doubt is an example of one of the most sophisticated mental talents that humans possess.

It is called "cognitive self-awareness," "metacognition" or "thinking about thinking" -- the ability to wonder whether one is making the "right" judgment.

Humans do it effortlessly, but there is new evidence that some animals can do it, too. In three simple but unusual experiments, researchers showed that rhesus monkeys and a bottlenose dolphin chose "I'm not sure" with virtually the same frequency as humans when offered difficult choices.

"They know when they don't know," said lead researcher John David Smith, a psychologist at the University at Buffalo of the State University of New York. "You up the stakes and give them a behavioral way to opt out, and they take it. It's lovely to watch."

The Smith team's research offers fresh evidence in an enduring controversy among psychologists over whether and how animals "know" things or think. Some researchers, who accept that animals can move beyond simple instincts and predispositions to actual consciousness, praised the Smith study:

"It's new and it's groundbreaking," said Emory University neuroscientist Lori Marino. "It is strong evidence that there is a similar cognition pattern in monkeys, humans and dolphins to the same task."

But others, such as behaviorist Clive D.L. Wynne of the University of Florida, dismissed the study as one more unsuccessful effort to bestow greater significance on actions that simply result from environment and training. "I'm ready to be proven wrong," Wynne said. "But it always turns out there is a simpler explanation."

Smith and co-authors Wendy Ellen Shields of the University of Montana and David Alan Washburn of Georgia State University are presenting their conclusions in the journal Behavioral and Brain Sciences, scheduled for publication in December.

For years, scientists have understood that the biggest difficulty in determining whether animals feel uncertainty is that unlike humans, "they can't talk, so they can't tell you they're not sure," Smith said. "You have to find a way for them to communicate." Smith devised three experiments to put humans and animals on the same footing.

In the first one, trained monkeys sat at a computer joystick and watched the density of colored dots in a square on the screen. When there were many dots, the monkey moved the joystick to the square itself, choosing "dense." When there were few dots, the monkey put the cursor on an "S," superimposed on the screen, indicating "sparse."

Gradually, examiners added more dots to the "sparse" test until the monkey reached a threshold where it could not easily discern whether the panel was "dense" or not. At that point, the monkey chose to put the cursor on a star, indicating uncertainty.

Smith said the two monkeys displayed uncertainty at almost the same threshold as seven humans who also took the test. This result, Smith and his co-authors said, "presents one of the strongest existing matches between human and animal performance in the comparative literature."

In the second test, a bottlenose dolphin was trained to press a lever when it heard a "low" tone, and another lever when it heard a "high" tone. At first, the dolphin was so enthusiastic that it kicked up swirls of water as it raced to the levers.

But when researchers raised the low tone until it approached the high tone, "he would creep in because he didn't know what to do," Smith said. "It was the dolphin equivalent of scratching its head." The dolphin would then resort to a third lever, indicating uncertainty.

Finally, in the third experiment, monkeys were given a memory test in which they viewed a column of four objects on a video screen, after which the screen went blank, to be replaced by a second screen displaying a single object, or "probe."

By moving a cursor, the monkeys indicated whether the probe had been "present" or "not present" in the first list, or whether they were not sure.
Like humans who took a similar test, the monkeys were strongest when the probe repeated the first or last object on the original list, and chose uncertainty more often when the probe had been in the second or third position.

Taken together, the results presented an "an exciting and meaningful step" in trying to show that the animal mind "is something that can be experimentally examined in its own right," said University of Utah psychologist Charles Shimp. But "I don't think it will change the minds of those who are dead set against this proposition."

Indeed, Wynne noted that the animals in all three experiments had to be trained to perform the tasks, and were given food when they succeeded and "timeouts," with no testing, when they failed. More important, he said, the uncertain response led to a resumption of testing that guaranteed a win on the next try.

"If the dolphin makes a mistake, it has to take a nine-second timeout, which is a long time for an animal," Wynne said. "But when it presses the uncertain button, the dolphin immediately gets an easy trial. It's difficult to say the dolphin is thinking if it's guaranteed a follow-up fish."

But Smith said the third test was too "cognitively abstract" to link it to a simple reward-punishment outcome, and noted that he had been unable to duplicate the dolphin and monkey results when he tried similar uncertainty experiments with lower animals.

"We ran two groups of six rats again and again, and none would do it at all," Smith said. "I can't say that they won't do it, but I sure couldn't figure out how to make it happen."

Bahamas Wild Dolphin Vacations

Fall 2003

• December 13 - December 19
• December 29 - January 4, 2004

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Here are some comments from the August 2003 Trip from Bimini. A great adventure for everyone.

When we think of all the words that describe the dolphins... fun loving, happy, joyful, nurturing, caring, loving, careful, intelligent, timeless, group-minded, positive, patient, protective, playful, peaceful, open-hearts... We realized these words also describes the three of you!!
Thank you for letting us join your "pod"! You all have left a lasting impression on us and we take home wonderful memories of our time together!

Thank you also for the respectful way you introduced us to your dolphin pod! They are even more awesome to meet face to face than could be imagined! We appreciated the calmness you all projected when we met the stingrays so we could experience how really sweet they really are! That calmness and respect of all Mother Oceans beautiful sealife was contagious! When we watched Cris gently scoop a jellyfish away from us, we were very touched by her concern and care for the fish and us.. and our fears began to fade. It was very refreshing to have our "schedule" be arranged be Mother Nature and Geoff's connection to her.

Thank you also for all the work and planning that you put into such a tasty menu! Such variety..so delicious..something for everyone.. and always served with a smile (even in the morning!!:-) ) Special thank you to Cris for the very creative and yummy birthday cake! It was so thoughtful and much appreciated! And thank you also for the cute dolphin gift- I will treasure them always. So many fun suprises! So many relaxing days! Such an -awesome-dream come true experience! When we think back on this trip we will remember you Geoff- lounging in the deep water..blowing bubble rings and Cris and Ester gliding along like dolphins...Too cool! Just remember... when you look into the face of one of your dolphins.. you three are seeing your own reflections!! You are truly awesome! We are grateful for who you are and all that you do!

Love and light

Gary and Donna

(Click Here for more information on this trip)

Eating Flipper

When coming to the Florida Keys, Don't flip out, folks: Mahi-mahi is not dolphin meat.

It is no wonder people don't know what and how to eat. There are all kinds of misconceptions about food.

Then there is the myth that the popular restaurant fish mahi-mahi is shudder, shudder, dolphin. It's not. Mahi-mahi actually is dolphin fish. Mahi-mahi means dolphin, but this food fish is not Flipper (a porpoise and a mammal).

So relax, everybody. You are not eating a cute little guy that spins around on his tail, chatters hysterically, appears to smile and saves people from ghastly demises.

This is a friendly public service announcement, so all can enjoy the food in the beautiful Florida Keys.

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TropicalAdventure.com
Costa Rica Scuba Diving

Scuba diving in Costa Rica has become popular in the last few years with it's virgin never before explored dive areas. New facilities along the pacific coastline are now offering first class dive boats and fully stocked dive shops. There has been sightings of whale sharks up to 35 feet long on numerous occasions, as well as, spinner dolphin, humpback whales, pilot whales, orcas, false killer whales and schools containing hundreds of Mobulas and thousands of cow-nosed rays.

To find out more about this story, please read this article on TropicalAdventure.com. If you are outdoor lover, this would be a great trip for you. Please Click Here to Read More!!