We need another and a wiser and perhaps a more mystical concept of animals. Remote from universal nature, and living by complicated artifice, man in civilization surveys the creature through the glass of his knowledge and sees thereby a feather magnified and the whole image distorted. We patronize them for their incompleteness, for their tragic fate of having taken form so far below ourselves. And therein we err, and greatly err. For the animal shall not be measured by man. In a world older and more complex than ours they move finished and complete, gifted with extensions of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear. They are not brethren, they are not underlings; they are other nations, caught with ourselves in the net of life and time, fellow prisoners of the splendour and travail of the earth.
HENRY BESTON, The Outermost House
In San Ignacio Lagoon in Baja, Mexico, a gray whale closely approaches our little boat. Gray whales have the longest annual migration of any mammal; they mate and give birth to their calves in this lagoon and forage way north in the frigid waters off Alaska. I am here to observe the impact that proposed salt mines might have on these whales. Unlike anything I’ve ever witnessed before, these friendly whales keep me mesmerized. Our close visitor is a mom, and her shiny new calf is barely the size of our boat. The mom lolls to one side to see us better— she gazes at us while the calf swims curiously around her. Mom is practically touching our boat when she slowly lifts her head above the surface to receive our outstretched hands with surprisingly gentle and soft caresses. I surprise myself by participating in the “whale massage.” I found this situation to be an exception to my otherwise rigid rule of “no touching wild animals.” This mother whale bears a scar resembling an old harpoon injury—a glaring reminder that her species was almost hunted to extinction before an international moratorium on commercial whaling was placed along their Pacific migration route in the 1940s. But this quiet moment with mom and her calf represented a unique interspecies trust upon which an entire ecotourism and international public conservation program was created. After this trip, I learned that the proposal to build the salt mines had been defeated; the decision was strongly tied to the ecotourism industry developing around these whales. It took one of the largest cetaceans to help me realize how powerful communication between humans and animals can be for the conservation of a species.— Toni
The study of dolphin communication directly contributes to our ability to protect and enhance the welfare and conservation of cetaceans. It also guides us in assessing the effectiveness of such efforts. My (Kathleen’s) research has been cosponsored by ecotourism since 1991: people interested in learning more about dolphins or those individuals who just want to meet dolphins up close and personal join me during some portions of my fieldwork for data collection. I remember a trip to Belize in 1992 with a group of eight participants. Aboard our survey boat about midway through the trip, one of the women turned to me with an astonished look. She said, “I am awed by how much we do not know about dolphins!” She had come on the trip to learn everything that could be known about dolphins but realized that there is still much (even now, many years later) to learn about these aquatic mammals. If we can reach one or two people every month with a sentiment like hers, then we will be well on our way to fostering a community of committed environmental stewards.
The effects of human activity on the behavior of dolphins can harm their survival and reproductive success.1 A variety of behaviors like avoidance, tail slapping, chuffing (like a “huff” from the blowhole), swift departure, charging, and ramming may indicate a negative reaction by dolphins to some human action.2 Vessel traffic affects the behavior of many species of toothed whale, including killer whales, spotted, spinner, bottlenose, striped, and common dolphins, harbor porpoises, narwhals, and belugas.3 Observations both above and below the surface have been conducted to assess the effects of boat and swimmer activity on dolphin behavior. Above-water annotations revealed an apparent absence of stress-related behaviors in dolphins near swimmers. In New Zealand, Rochelle Constantine determined that dolphin behavior toward swimmers was somewhat dependent on the boat’s operation and placement of the swimmers. She found that dolphins exhibited the least avoidance behavior when swimmers were placed abreast of the dolphins, while putting the swimmers in the water when the dolphins were bow-riding yielded the highest rate of sustained in-water interaction: the dolphins remained near the boat longer. Constantine also recorded the highest avoidance of swimmers when boats placed swimmers in their path of travel.4 We need to understand what dolphins consider acceptable before imposing ourselves on them. Understanding dolphin society and their information signals better informs our management of these interactions. We need to communicate our findings about dolphins to instill better manners in humans when interacting around dolphins. This includes learning how to avoid miscommunication.
Many dolphin species face serious wildlife conservation challenges today, and some species are on the verge of extinction. In December 2006, the Chinese river dolphin, also known as the baiji, or Yangtse river dolphin, was declared functionally extinct. A handful of individual baiji may still be alive, but not enough for species recovery. Dolphins are intentionally killed, legally and illegally, in many parts of the world and are unintentionally killed by entanglement in fishing lines and nets. Other formidable threats to dolphins worldwide include prey reduction because of overfishing and bycatch, climate change, and habitat degradation in the form of vessel harassment and collision, incidental mortality during fishing operations, oil spills, and anthropogenic noise emissions (from boats, oil exploration, and military activities). But by far the most widespread and seemingly detrimental force against dolphins is pollution. Studies of behavior and communication among dolphins are critical to understanding how these threats can best be mitigated.
The effects of global warming and climate change are complex and varied. Changes in ocean temperature and salinity will influence how sounds propagate through water. It is not a leap to conclude that this will affect dolphins’ ability to communicate acoustically. Accordingly, dolphins—indeed, all marine animals that rely on vocal communication—may be required to modify the duration, frequency, or quality of their vocal signaling as aspects of their environment change. Whether this is possible is a question for the future.
Invisible synthetic underwater noise is perhaps the greatest impediment to communication for cetaceans. The issue of human-generated marine noise is becoming increasingly controversial as levels of this noise continue to grow in the world’s oceans.5 Activities such as military active sonar, shipping noise, seismic surveys, and Acoustic Thermometry of Ocean Climate (commonly referred to as ATOC) on whales and dolphins (and other marine life) have the potential to cause hearing loss as well as other physiological impacts. Sound is a pressure wave and can injure tissues throughout the body of an animal underwater. Various behavioral responses can include negative effects on the abilities of dolphins and other marine species to communicate with one another, let alone survive.6
Chronic and persistent ambient noise in the dolphins’ world is often related to increases in oceanic vessel traffic. Some research suggests that shipping noise has impeded the range through which important cetacean vocalizations related to feeding and communication can be heard and perhaps to group dynamics as a whole.7 In the busy coastal waters off California, noise from shipping has increased roughly three decibels per decade and is increasing even faster in other areas.8 Shipping noise and seismic surveys have a high potential to interfere with cetacean communication via masking, which occurs when background noise overwhelms the signal of interest (such as a fellow whale’s vocalization).9
Military active sonar, whether using high-, mid-, or low-frequency sound, generates a “ping” with a very loud source level. Because of the sporadic, short-term use of sonar during military exercises and combat situations, sonar pings are more likely to have acute rather than chronic effects on cetaceans. In addition, most active sonar is used in the mid-frequency range, which does not travel as far as low-frequency sound. Low-frequency active sonar is more likely to affect the communication of baleen whales, whereas mid-frequency active sonar has a particularly dangerous, and sometimes fatal, effect on deep-diving toothed cetaceans. A widely published series of mass strandings, particularly of beaked whales and other odontocetes, has led to increased scrutiny of the widespread use of mid-frequency sonar.10
Fortunately, countries around the world are increasingly designating marine protected areas to protect ecosystems; in some cases these areas are targeted toward cetaceans. Researcher Erich Hoyt has documented more than 350 marine protected areas. He comments, however, that “few of these areas are set up to protect dolphin communication, but they should be.”11 Although some areas effectively protect dolphins and whales from such loud noises as naval mid-frequency sonar, seismic exploration, and the increasing clamor of world shipping, Hoyt notes that “none of the areas will protect cetaceans from Navy low-frequency sonar, which can penetrate hundreds or even thousands of miles (kilometers) across the world ocean.”12
Playing back sounds and monitoring the dolphins’ responses can help to determine individual- and population-level impacts of anthropogenic noises.13 Applications in wildlife management and conservation include mitigating interference with human industrial activities such as fishing; minimizing harm from other human activities such as seismic surveys and air-gun testing, drilling noise, and underwater explosions; and investigating avoidance responses of marine mammals to lessen the risk of vessel collisions.
Volker Deecke has reviewed the fascinating history of playback experiments with cetaceans and other marine mammals.14 Experimental playbacks of calls to toothed cetaceans that were also applied to management situations began in the 1970s. Killer whale calls were used to exclude seals and sea lions from ongoing fishing areas, and studies involving the playbacks of conspecific calls to belugas in captivity and the wild were conducted. The 1980s brought an awareness of the need for, as well as the technology to, examine the effect of noise associated with offshore oil and gas extraction (air-gun sounds and drilling noise) on baleen whales. Since then, researchers have examined the effects of sound on dolphins from vessels as small as Jet Skis to large cruise and industrial, commercial ships.
The use of some of these technologies is not without various shades of controversy. One study concluded that killer whales were negatively affected and displaced in two areas after the introduction of acoustic deterrent devices into their habitat. While the devices were operating, both mammal-eating and fish-eating orcas declined in numbers. They returned to baseline levels when the devices were off. Invasive techniques such as playback experiments, acoustic deterrent devices, and tagging/bolting telemetry devices onto cetaceans have often helped protect these animals. However, as innovative and informative as they may be and, regardless of researchers’ good intentions, sometimes the animals suffer. Scientists continue to search for more humane and benign methods of gathering information to study and respond to the conservation needs of whales and dolphins.15 In June 2007, a journalist from Canada reported sighting an injured, undernourished beluga with a satellite transmitter clearly dragging through its skin, prompting a wildlife management board to consider changing how research is conducted in the Arctic so that no more animals are subjected to such “horrifying treatment.”16
Dolphin and whale watching in the wild is a rapidly growing segment of the tourism market. In Shark Bay, Western Australia, a group of bottlenose dolphins allows close contact with waders who have regularly fed them for approximately forty years.17 This group of dolphins and the associated feeding program has evolved into an important source of local economic revenue and has inspired dolphin-feeding enterprises elsewhere.18 Other dolphin groups are targeted by large numbers of people seeking close contact without feeding programs. In New Zealand, for instance, tens of thousands of people attempt to swim with bottlenose and dusky dolphins from commercial boats every year.19 Atlantic spotted and bottlenose dolphins have interacted with swimmers and divers in both near and offshore Bahamian waters fairly consistently for decades.20 In Hawaii swimmers and kayakers regularly seek out spinner dolphins, even though swimming with dolphins in U.S. waters is illegal. In Japan people flock to swim with wild bottlenose dolphins that, ironically, are sometimes targeted by fishermen. Mikura Island saw its dolphin swim program grow exponentially from 1994 to 2000, when almost ten thousand people visited Miyake Island, 10 miles (18 km) north of Mikura, between May and September to ride boats that took them to swim with the dolphins around Mikura. I (Kathleen) began studying these dolphins in 1995. In 1998 and 1999, I saw the dolphins become more agitated and somewhat aggressive toward people in the water. In 2000, Miyake’s volcano erupted, causing a five-year evacuation of the island and a subsequent 90 percent reduction in the number of tourists visiting either island to swim with dolphins around Mikura. Over the next two years, the dolphins’ behavior “relaxed” both toward swimmers and more generally when we were observing them. The Mikura fishing and tourism cooperatives have since adopted strict regulations regarding swimmer and boat interactions with the dolphins, benefiting both communities. Swim situations like those at Mikura often begin noncommercially, involving only a few people and dolphins, and subsequently become the focus of dolphin-swim businesses that can attract large numbers of tourists who want up-close meetings with dolphins.
In the United States, it is illegal to feed wild dolphins anything. All marine mammals, including dolphins, are protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972.
Free-ranging, “friendly” dolphins who interact with people are frequently harassed, hurt, or even killed—whether intentionally or unintentionally. From the Caribbean to South America and Hawaii to Canada, I (Toni) have found that most recreational and professional boat operators earnestly believe they do not harass the dolphins they are watching. Yet I have seen many of them, especially in countries in which cetaceans are not legally protected, operate their boats in ways that are highly dangerous for the dolphins, such as pursuing them at high speeds, occasionally even separating mother-calf pairs. When a boat chases dolphins or when swimmers interrupt a group of resting or feeding dolphins, the dolphins may exhibit signs of disturbance, such as repetitive fluke slapping at the surface. A consumer-driven industry (with notable exceptions) combined with an overzealous desire to be near dolphins can certainly contribute to errors in judgment and sensitivity. When dolphin watching is conducted carefully and from a respectable distance, however, observable impacts to dolphins targeted for watching can be minimized.
Severe and lethal injuries from boats, cumulative and long-term changes related to breeding behavior, disruption of rest, displacement from habitat, and long-term responses to human activity (such as sensitization and habituation) have been associated with vessel and swimmer contacts.21 In particular, increased mortality has been documented for solitary, sociable dolphins and other free-ranging dolphins who were regularly fed by humans. Researcher Lars Bejder has observed that in some areas, the impact of numerous swimmers was minimal, whereas in other habitats the impact of even one swimmer was enough to disrupt rest, feeding, and other important dolphin activities.22 Similarly, Rochelle Constantine has found that over time the bottlenose dolphins in New Zealand’s Bay of Islands are interacting with swimmers less and avoiding them more. David Lusseau has found that an entire population of dolphins is being threatened by the numerous tourist boats that come to see the dolphins in Milford Sound, also in New Zealand.23 He has documented dolphins being injured and killed by the boats and states that up to 7 percent of them bear visible scars from collisions. Even large toothed cetaceans like sperm whales, another species vital to New Zealand’s whale- and dolphin-watching industry, are sensitive to harassment from boat traffic.24 The presence of whale-watching boats can cause whales to change their direction of swimming, likely causing unnecessary stress. Anna Forrest and S. Courbis have observed that Hawaiian spinner dolphins in Kealakekua Bay, Hawaii, may be avoiding important areas for resting, nursing, and mating because of the increased presence of swimmers and boaters.25 Intensive whale-watching activity from boats appears to disrupt important activities like resting, feeding, and mating in seriously depleted populations of killer whales in North American waters.
Dolphins will often leap toward a moving vessel to catch a ride on the bow wave. This can be a responsible way of viewing dolphins in the wild.
The co-operator of Wild Side Tours and director of the Wild Dolphin Foundation on Oahu, Tori Cullins, has said that her business would be willing to sacrifice a drop in clientele rather than allow the number of human-to-dolphin contacts to continue climbing.26 Not all tour operators share this sentiment, however. If the trend continues, the irony would be that we could love nature (in this case the dolphins) to death.
Even when dolphins do not show recognizable signs of stress in response to human contact, excessive proximity to people places them at higher risk of being deliberately or accidentally harmed. We must remember that the oceans, seas, and bays that we enter to visit dolphins are their homes as well as their playground. As we learn more about their communication systems and social lives, we will be better informed to manage our visits more appropriately. Once we know the proper etiquette, it will be our responsibility to be good guests. Until then, we should err on the side of caution.
Different cultures relate to dolphins in starkly contrasting ways today. Some view dolphins as little more than food, fertilizer, or a form of commerce, whereas others demonstrate a high degree of respect for these animals. For dolphin tourism to be humane, sustainable, and environmentally responsible, proactive measures must be taken to protect dolphins from negative impacts of human activities. To this end, a precautionary approach should be taken in legislation and management of watching activities, and regulations based on the best available scientific information should be developed and regularly monitored by independent and trained observers.27 The tremendous socioeconomic potential for viewing free-ranging dolphins and whales in many areas of the world that rely on tourism as an industry has yet to be realized. Rather than irreversibly depleting natural resources, responsible watching has the potential to offer many economies an unprecedented opportunity to respond to a burgeoning number of environmentally sensitive naturalists and tourists while enhancing local stewardship of their natural environment.
Caution is warranted here because even well-intentioned attempts to view dolphins can affect individual animals and populations. Interruption of resting, feeding, nursing, and mating behaviors can occur easily, even with experienced tour operators. This is particularly true when guests have high expectations regarding their wildlife experience.28 Over the past decade, there has been considerable research on the short-term effects of tourism industries on wild toothed whales, but studies designed to monitor long-term effects are rare. Short-term impacts are more readily measured and correlated to human activities than the more critical long-term effects.29 Many studies have observed short-term reactions to human activities including changes in respiration and surfacing, swimming speed and course, group activity and social behavior, vocalizations, and individual behaviors suggestive of stress responses.30
A literature review that I (Toni) conducted for the International Whaling Commission revealed that odontocetes that have the highest degree of contact with humans in the wild are generally at the greatest risk of injury, illness, and death.31 In particular, incidents in which humans intentionally injured or killed sociable odontocetes were reported almost exclusively for solitary dolphins as well as for those regularly fed by humans.32 From Opo, the solitary dolphin who played with beachgoers and gave children “rides” but was later killed by a fisherman, to Luna, the friendly young orca who was separated from his pod and eventually killed in the propeller of a tugboat, life with humans can be a challenge. Although some cetaceans seem to enjoy human interaction, the long-term implications are that solitary, sociable individuals will be injured or killed—intentionally or accidentally—by humans and human activity.
Research that we both conducted with our colleagues Barbara Bilgre, Nicole Crane, and Alison Sanders on a bottlenose dolphin in Belize, as well as work that Toni did with Cathy Kinsman on belugas, has shown that successful protection of solitary odontocetes and humans with whom they associate is directly related to early implementation and consistency of on-site, proactive stewardship, management, and research programs.33 Clearly, research and management are warranted to protect both the odontocetes and humans who participate in these astonishing, though potentially dangerous, situations.34
Observations from studies on captive swim-with-the-dolphin programs indicate that these activities may not always have the best effects on participating dolphins. Three of the four published studies that focus on behavioral indicators of stress in captive dolphin swim programs all report stress-related and avoidance-related behaviors from dolphins in the presence of swimmers. In the early 1990s, I (Toni) observed captive dolphins direct behaviors toward swimmers that were related to stress and aggression.35 Within a year or so, the federal government commissioned a second, broader study to examine swim-with-the-dolphin programs at four American facilities. With respect to high-risk behaviors, the investigators found that captive dolphins frequently behaved submissively to swimmers even when the swimmers were small in stature, minimally mobile, and not aggressive.36 The third study, on captive swim programs in New Zealand, showed that dolphins spent significantly more time in a swimmer-free refuge area during swim programs than when there were no swimmers in the pool, suggesting that the dolphins were actively avoiding swimmers.37 The most recent study, also in the United States, is the only one that did not reveal notable behaviors indicative of stress related to swim programs.38 The focus of this study differed slightly from the other three in that it focused primarily on behaviors indicative of positive welfare—specifically, play-related behaviors. Perhaps the variation in results from studies on these programs elucidates the differences that can be observed between different animals and environments.
The scant research on petting and feeding programs is a loud cry for more rigorous examination into how these programs affect dolphin welfare.39 Signs of poor welfare vary even among experts, but the available data suggest that numerous interactions were directly harmful to both dolphins and humans; for example, dolphins bit members of the public, and people fed dolphins inappropriate foods. Even though these data are limited, they indicate the importance of proceeding with extreme caution when considering a captive feeding program.
Many countries have few, if any, legal requirements governing the welfare and unique needs of captive dolphins or of the protocol to be followed within swim programs, either in the wild or in captivity. This often results in diminished welfare and even death for the animals.40 In the United States, the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 governs all human interactions with wild dolphins, whales, and porpoises, as well as seals, sea lions, sea otters, polar bears, and manatees. It is illegal to change the behavior of, harass, harm, or kill any marine mammal. Because swimming with a marine mammal typically results in a change of behavior in that animal, it is thus not legal in U.S. waters. Other countries, such as Chile, prohibit the capture or confinement of these cetaceans, whereas nations such as Italy and Brazil prohibit interactive programs involving physical contact and public feeding. Increasing numbers of countries, such as the United Kingdom and Australia, are phasing out captive public display facilities, while other nations have denied permits to capture, import, or export dolphins, Mexico being the most recent example.
Some countries, such as Japan, still allow dolphin hunting. Working against this practice is Act for Dolphins (AFD; www.actfordolphins.com), a group of academics, scientists, and marine mammal professionals that opposes the unnecessary, unsustainable, and inhumane treatment of dolphins and other small cetaceans killed annually during drive hunts. These hunts are regulated by the Japanese government and conducted by groups of fishermen who herd hundreds, sometimes thousands, of dolphins and other small cetaceans into shallow bays. The dolphins are then corralled into nets and dispatched in a brutal manner. The methods, say researchers, result in a slow, painful death for these intelligent marine mammals.
Cofounder Lori Marino notes, “We hope [AFD] serves as a model for more involvement of the scientific community (and students) in welfare issues.”41 According to the organization, “the ethical argument for ending the drive is supported by a solid foundation of scientific evidence indicating that dolphins possess the mental and emotional capacities for pain and suffering on par with great apes and humans. It is also increasingly clear that dolphins have social traditions and cultures, complex interdependent relationships, and strong family ties all of which are susceptible to disruption or even dissolution in the drives.” Many of the species hunted in Japan are on the World Conservation Union’s Red List of Threatened Species. The hunts have also drawn criticism from relevant management organizations on both conservation and welfare grounds, including the International Whaling Commission, the treaty organization that regulates the hunting of the great whales.
The public display of captive dolphins, particularly those used in interactive programs, has become increasingly controversial in both scientific and public arenas.42 Population and conservation biologists, as well as government agencies internationally, are concerned about potential effects from the increasing numbers of facilities in which dolphins are held captive. Dolphins have been kept in captivity since the first century c.e., when a stranded killer whale was captured and kept by Roman guards for sport.43 Private collections of dolphins held in tubs and pools were attempted as early as the 1400s. In the mid-1800s, P. T. Barnum publicly exhibited captive bottlenose dolphins and belugas in a New York museum. Facilities dedicated to this purpose began to burgeon in the late 1930s. It is estimated today that there are at least two hundred captive dolphin exhibits in sixty or more countries.44 The smaller toothed whales and dolphins are most commonly kept in human care; bottlenose dolphins are the most adaptable and readily habituated odontocete to the captive environment. Still, some facilities include killer whales, belugas, false killer whales, Pacific white-sided dolphins, and others.
Captive marine mammals have traditionally been simply on display or used to perform trained behaviors for the public. Over the past several decades, the popularity of interactive programs that allow tourists to swim with, wade with, touch, and feed captive dolphins has created a tremendous increase in the international market for capture of these animals from the wild. Swim-with-the-dolphin programs proliferate in part because of large tourist revenues generated from the cruise ship industry, which brings tourists to interact with captive dolphins as part of their recreational itineraries. Swim-with-the-dolphin facilities catering to tourists are opening in the Caribbean at the rate of two new programs per year.
One benefit these programs can offer is to expand their educational initiatives to provide the most accurate and up-to-date information about dolphin social lives and communication; several companies already offer strong educational programs that present opportunities for controlled interactions between dolphins and human visitors. Programs like these should lead to increased public awareness of marine mammal conservation and protection issues.
When we consider animal welfare, we refer to the degree of well-being or suffering that the animal experiences.45 Well-being refers to a positive state, whereas suffering refers to a prolonged or acutely negative state. When an animal is subjected to aversive stimuli or deprived of certain behavioral opportunities, its well-being is threatened and suffering may result.46 A thorough appraisal of an animal’s welfare considers its mental, physical, and physiological condition. This assessment is optimally conducted by combining behavioral data with physical and physiological data; these data may be useful only when observed in conjunction with behavioral parameters.47 Behavioral research on dolphins during interactive programs, therefore, is important in evaluating the welfare of dolphin participants and thus for minimizing risks to dolphins and humans. Behavioral assessment of dolphin welfare is also important for the husbandry and management of captive dolphins.48
Behavior is often one of the only available indicators of the condition of marine mammals. Recognizing and evaluating behavioral changes in dolphins is critical to identifying pre-pathological states.49 Measurements of physiological stress may be difficult or undesirable to obtain because of concerns about increasing an animal’s stress, especially in aquatic animals. It is also important to remember that the nature of the stressor does not always correspond to the manifestation of stress.50 For example, physical abnormalities such as self-inflicted injuries may result from an animal’s response to psychological stressors. The severity of the stress response, too, is not determined by the nature of the stressor. For example, psychological stimuli can produce an equal or greater stress response in animals than physical stressors.51
Abnormal behavior in an animal may be a product of stressful circumstances and may indicate suffering.52 By abnormal behaviors we mean actions that a minority of the population performs.53 Yet the absence of abnormal or other potentially stress-related behaviors should never be used to conclude that an animal is not suffering physically or psychologically. It is not uncommon for captive dolphins to display behaviors interpreted as abnormal, including unusually stereotyped behavior, self-destructive behavior, self-mutilation, and excessive aggression toward humans and peers.54
At least two assessments compare what we know about viewing dolphins in the wild and in captivity.55 Although different in scope, both conclude that viewing cetaceans in the wild, when conducted in a responsible and precautionary manner, offers more benefits to and fewer negative effects on both dolphins and people, and can provide a uniquely important form of tourism and income to local communities. (A side note: Kathleen is currently conducting a comprehensive study of wild and captive dolphin behavior employing identical methods for data collection and analyses. Preliminary findings suggest more similarity than difference between captive and wild dolphins when examined at the individual level.) Watching cetaceans in the wild offers an unparalleled combination of educational, socioeconomic, and conservation benefits as well as an opportunity for environmentally sensitive nature-based tourism. Still, in my (Kathleen’s) opinion, the value of being able to interact with dolphins, even in a captive swim-with-the-dolphin program, cannot be dismissed outright; I have witnessed how these interactions succeed in fostering people’s greater awareness of conservation issues.
The value and impact of viewing dolphins in the wild as well as in captivity has yet to be adequately and scientifically examined. Consequently, many researchers have concluded that a precautionary principle should be applied to dolphin-human interactions. Perhaps the most valuable aspect of watching cetaceans in the wild is the potential to educate people to value marine mammals and their environment by providing a first-hand experience of these animals in the habitat in which they live. Alas, relatively few people (compared with the total human population) will have the opportunity to visit dolphins in the wild; therefore, captive dolphins, when well cared for in an enriched environment, can act as ambassadors for their wild counterparts. Despite the need for data documenting educational benefits, existing data do suggest that whale watching in the wild can “foster more appreciative and concerned attitudes toward whales.”56 When conducted responsibly and educationally, dolphin- and whale-watching tours teach people about the importance of maintaining the habitat of these animals and inspire their greater involvement in conservation efforts.57 Dolphins and whales are charismatic megafauna, the darlings of the media and many people. If we protect them, we often protect many other marine species that might be less charismatic.
Kathleen has written elsewhere: “It is important to realize that the ocean is not our home, but our playground.”58 Not only do we both consider this a poignant and eloquent declaration reflective of her many years spent underwater with dolphins, but it mirrors the bumper sticker on Toni’s car, which reads, “The ocean is my playground.” We couldn’t agree more. “We are guests and should act accordingly and with caution. Even though equipped with a huge smile and a seemingly forever-harmonious disposition, dolphins and whales are wild animals and should be treated with respect. If our future with dolphins is to include real interspecies communication, respecting dolphins enough to ‘listen’ to them would be the first step.”59
The better we understand the signals used to coordinate communication and social activity among individuals within a population, whether dolphins or elephants or chimpanzees, the better we will understand the evolution of that population’s social life and strategies. Increasing our knowledge of dolphin social ecology and communication heightens our understanding of the dynamics of their society and how we—human interlopers into their underwater world—affect their development as individuals and as a community. We can hope that greater understanding of what lies behind the dolphin’s smile will lead to better conservation and protection for these amazing ocean-dwelling animals.
