Why is a dolphin 'attacking' beachgoers in Japan?
Researchers say they're working to understand why dolphins are leaving their usual habitats.
In short:
In the coastal area of Fukui prefecture in western Japan there have been 18 reports of a dolphin attacking swimmers this year.
The culprit appears to be a lone dolphin that wants to interact with humans.
What's next?
Dolphin researchers say they are trying to get a better understanding of why dolphins are leaving their usual habitat.
In Japan's western Fukui prefecture, a series of "attacks" by what appears to be a lone dolphin has got people asking why the normally friendly mammals would be going after swimmers.
So far this year, the dolphin has reportedly had a go at at least 18 people.
One man told local Japanese media that a dolphin bit him and forced itself on top of him, nearly pushing him underwater.
More than 50 people have been injured in the last three years in Fukui, but local media say there could be more, with some people not reporting incidents to the police.
A poster of a dolphin warning by the Tsuruga Coast Guard office in Fukui Prefecture.
The Japanese Coast Guard is warning locals and visitors to beaches in Fukui prefecture to "never touch them and get out of the sea" if they encounter a dolphin.
While dolphins usually live in schools, in all the incidents in Fukui, only one dolphin was believed to be present.
Tadamichi Morisaka, a dolphin researcher at Mie University in Japan, said available vision appeared to show the same male Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin responsible each time.
Tadamichi Morisaka from Mie University in Japan who studies dolphins.
While there is limited data on Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins, the International Union for Conservation (IUCN) classifies them as "near threatened".
"We identify dolphins through scars on their body and their fins," Dr Morisaka told the ABC.
"We saw in previous years that this dolphin had a wound on its fin that matches the dolphin this year."
Why is a dolphin 'attacking' swimmers?
Dr Morisaka said what humans saw as "attacks" were for dolphins just a way of communicating.
"Dolphins rub themselves against each other and gently bite each other as a way to play and to communicate," Dr Morisaka said.
"They don't have hands and feet like we do, so the way that they might try to get us to keep playing with them inevitably means that they bite us."
Jeff Weir, from the Dolphin Research Institute in Victoria, told the ABC that dolphins could also be very aggressive towards each other, and that people should be aware that they were still predators.
"There are examples of bottlenose dolphins being beaten up by other bottlenose dolphins and there are examples of bottlenose dolphins picking on other smaller species," he said.
Dolphin Research Institute executive director Jeff Weir.
While he was not aware of any reports of attacks on humans in Australia, he had heard reports of individual animals showing "classic aggression behaviours".
"I wouldn't let my grandkid in the water with them based on what I've had described to me," he said.
"They are big wild predators. They're not just like the Flipper that those of us who are old enough grew up with.
"They're big strong predators, and the idea that they will be super curious and gentle — they're not gentle with each other."
More research needed
Dr Morisaka said dolphins usually stayed in areas of the sea they liked and where they could feed.
"The dolphin responsible for the attacks most likely came from an area north of Fukui prefecture, where these dolphins live in warm climates," he said.
He said while it was not common, it was also not that rare for a dolphin to wander off by itself.
But for it to keep coming back to a shallow area, where it wouldn't find its usual diet of squid and fish, most likely meant this dolphin wanted to be around people.
Dr Morisaka said the issue needed more research.
While habitats had changed for whales due to warming sea temperatures, the same could not be said for certain about dolphins around Japan, he said.
"The thing we are working on is understanding why these dolphins are leaving their habitat," he said.
He said there had been cases of lone dolphins, pairs, groups, and even dolphins with their calves leaving their habitat.
But he said tagging dolphins and getting accurate data about them was difficult.
"There are many issues in Japan with cetaceans [whale and dolphin species]," Dr Morisaka said.
"While we have dolphins in aquariums that can be researched, there is also a culture of eating whales and dolphins too.
"A lot of people want a lot of things from them."
By：https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-10-04/dolphin-attacking-swimmers-in-japan/104355156(责任编辑：admin)
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