Dolphins Protect New Zealand Swimmers from Shark

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HeXp£Øi±

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WELLINGTON (Reuters) - A pod of dolphins circled protectively round a group of New Zealand swimmers to fend off an attack by a great white shark, media reported on Tuesday.


Lifesavers Rob Howes, his 15-year-old daughter Niccy, Karina Cooper and Helen Slade were swimming 300 feet off Ocean Beach near Whangarei on New Zealand's North Island when the dolphins herded them -- apparently to protect them from a shark.


"They started to herd us up, they pushed all four of us together by doing tight circles around us," Howes told the New Zealand Press Association (NZPA).


Howes tried to drift away from the group, but two of the bigger dolphins herded him back just as he spotted a nine-foot great white shark swimming toward the group.


"I just recoiled. It was only about 2 m away from me, the water was crystal clear and it was as clear as the nose on my face," Howes said, referring to a distance of 6 feet.


"They had corralled us up to protect us," he said.


The lifesavers spent the next 40 minutes surrounded by the dolphins before they could safely swim back to shore. The incident happened on October 30, but the lifesavers kept the story to themselves until now.


Environment group Orca Research said dolphins attacked sharks to protect themselves and their young, so their actions in protecting the lifesavers was understandable.


"They could have sensed the danger to the swimmers and taken action to protect them," Orca's Ingrid Visser told NZPA.
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http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tm...nm/20041123/sc_nm/life_newzealand_dolphins_dc
 
Thats certainly.....different.

I wonder what it is that drives dolphins to help stranded divers or swimmers in danger.....and I wish humanity would pick it up (yes I know it's gooey but it's nice to wish)
 
Raven said:
Thats certainly.....different.

I wonder what it is that drives dolphins to help stranded divers or swimmers in danger.....and I wish humanity would pick it up (yes I know it's gooey but it's nice to wish)
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I think they relate to us as intelligent beings and recognize us as generally bad swimmers. This is basically what they do for their young.
 
Raven said:
Thats certainly.....different.

I wonder what it is that drives dolphins to help stranded divers or swimmers in danger.....and I wish humanity would pick it up (yes I know it's gooey but it's nice to wish)
Click to expand...

I've heard stories like that myself, but I no longer trust dolphins...:grumpy:...They're cruel and mischeivious...Read this if you have any doubts...
 
Raven said:
:rofl4:

Dolphins like to play games whereby they carry things in their mouths and pass them on to each other....prolly thought you were doing the same.
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I don't think so...:grumpy:
 
This story is fantastic, because although it doesn't show that the dolphins were literally thinking to - "protect humans from shark" -but that they have the awareness and cognition of danger and the ability to react and protect themselves and others - presumably they thought they were other dolphins, perhaps recognised on some level that they were defenseless against the shark - just like their own young - though we can't really know that for sure, can we?

It has long been documented that dolphins posess a unique intelligence, and an intelligence that is quite similar to ours in many ways - the thing is, no-one is quite sure even know the dimensions of that intelligence because research is expensive and limited, especially with pods of wild dolphins. Though they have been shown to display a developed self awareness and ability to interact with others not much else is known, which makes them quite fascinating I think.

heres an article I found

:)
 
tank girl said:
This story is fantastic, because although it doesn't show that the dolphins were literally thinking to - "protect humans from shark" -but that they have the awareness and cognition of danger and the ability to react and protect themselves and others - presumably they thought they were other dolphins, perhaps recognised on some level that they were defenseless against the shark - just like their own young - though we can't really know that for sure, can we?

It has long been documented that dolphins posess a unique intelligence, and an intelligence that is quite similar to ours in many ways - the thing is, no-one is quite sure even know the dimensions of that intelligence because research is expensive and limited, especially with pods of wild dolphins. Though they have been shown to display a developed self awareness and ability to interact with others not much else is known, which makes them quite fascinating I think.

heres an article I found

:)
Click to expand...

Deviousness...not intelligence. The bastard tried to drown me, just for sport. No, I can't actually prove it, but that's what it felt like at the time...
 
Maybe the critters were using the "I only have to out-run you" method, and making the shark an offering people. j/k

Cool story.
 
Gato_Solo said:
Deviousness...not intelligence. The bastard tried to drown me, just for sport. No, I can't actually prove it, but that's what it felt like at the time...
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heh, sorry gato I was refering to story no. 1, I won't take bad publicity about my dolphin friends :lloyd:
 
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