A lone bottlenose dolphin is thought to be the cause of several assaults on swimmers at a beach town in Japan, probably due to loneliness.
On August 20, the Japanese television network NHK reported that a man in his fifties had been bitten on both hands the same morning at a beach in Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture, by a dolphin that had approached him as he was attempting to shoo it away. He was the second dolphin victim in as many days and the 18th since July 21.
According to NHK, 48 locals have been bitten by dolphins in the last three years, leaving some with shattered bones.
The assaults in recent years are generally assumed to have been carried out by the same male bottlenose dolphin, however this has not been proved. Considering bottlenose dolphins are a very sociable species that forms close pods, the assaults have always featured a single dolphin that looks to be on its alone.
The dolphin attacked on August 20 had injuries on its dorsal fin that resembled those of a dolphin sighted off the coast last year, according to Tadamichi Morisaka, a researcher at Mie University’s Cetacean Research Center in Japan, who has seen photos of the dolphin. Like fingerprints, dorsal fins are specific to each dolphin.
Morisaka told NHK, “It’s reasonable to assume that they’re the same individual.”
Morisaka further mentioned in an email to NBC News that this type of bottlenose dolphin seldom approaches humans, much less bites them. In this instance, it seems that the dolphin has become accustomed to interacting with humans after doing so for a number of years.
The humorous appearance of the bites, he added, suggests that the dolphin “mainly wants to interact with humans” rather than to damage or attack them.
However, even a little bite from a dolphin can harm a human since they have a large number of sharp teeth.
It is now advised for swimmers in the region to exit the water if they spot a dolphin. A beach employee using water skis enticed a dolphin that was observed on August 21 close to the bathing area at a beach in the town of Mihama out to sea.
“There were several instances of swimmers being bitten by dolphins last year. According to a coast guard notification, “some even suffered broken bones requiring more than 10 stitches,” and “the swimmers were bitten as they approached the dolphins to touch them in many cases.”
Although dolphins are “usually calm creatures,” the Wakasa-Mihama Tourist Association has put signs warning that if challenged, they can take humans out to sea or draw blood with their teeth.
Dolphin Research Australia’s founder and CEO, Elizabeth Hawkins, stated that the animal engaged in the assaults appears to be a “sociable solitary dolphin” that has separated itself from its regular dolphin group, however it is unknown why.
Abandoned on their own, the dolphins “seek out other species to satisfy their natural social urges, and humans are often those species,” the expert added.
Male bottlenose dolphins frequently develop close relationships with one another, which they maintain through biting, chasing, and physical contact—including when it comes to mating.
According to Hawkins, they “can be quite pushy, they can be quite aggressive, they can bite” when they are socially isolated.
She explained, “That’s all just part of their regular behavior in the dolphin society.” However, it’s clear that it may be quite harmful and result in very terrible damage when it comes to people.
Thus, it is obvious that we want to ensure that this species is provided room in its particular setting.
