Charting interactions between dolphins and people
Irish Dolphins - Interactions between dolphins and people.  Including Fungie the Dingle Dolphin
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Reaction to boats

At Doolin in 2000, Dusty was curious about boats and their engines and would tend to follow them around if they tried to entice her out of the cave system. However she did not follow them when they left the area. She was also interested in kayaks. Luckily the exposed nature of the site meant that there were relatively few days on which it was safe for boats to approach too close, and the narrowness of the gully put most mariners off the idea of pursuing her right inside, so swimmers and cliff-top watchers were only rarely disturbed by boat-owners.
At Fanore during 2001, she was also not particularly interested in following boats so they tended to leave her alone. However we heard that with a new RIB in the water in December, she got very excited. In April 2002 we saw her racing out to meet a fast moving boat but she turned back when the boat did not respond.
Perhaps inevitably, as more and more people took to the water in fast boats during the 2000s, Dusty also went the way of other interactive dolphins and became susceptible to the seduction of outboard engines. During her stay at White Strand from 2005 to 2009, controversy raged over the use of inflatable dinghies and then more powerful RIBs by some dolphin swimmers, to the chagrin of others. Back at Fanore since 2010, Dusty is now a habituated boat follower when they are around, but she still loves to play with kayakers and swimmers.
Date Posted: 03/08/2001
Date Edited: 21/03/2012

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