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Lone sociable bottlenose dolphin in Brazil: Human fatality and management
... Although there is evidence that this may sometimes be the case, 60 there are also various accounts of solitary dolphins injuring humans in the water with them. Such aggressive behaviors from the dolphins are often the result of inappropriate human interactions (26,38). Wilke et al. (2) suggested that inappropriate or overly energetic interactions on the part of humans may cause sexual arousal in the dolphin, which has the potential to turn into sexual aggression. ...
... "Zafar, " who is currently resident in Brittany, has directed such attention to humans, pushing divers to the bottom and preventing kayaks from maneuvering. 61 In the most extreme reported case of a violent interaction, "Tião, " a Brazilian bottlenose dolphin, injured 29 people and caused the death of a 30-year-old man after butting him; the man died from internal injuries (38). The context of this may be important. ...
... The context of this may be important. People had subjected "Tião" to a number of inappropriate behaviors such as grabbing his fins, hitting him, jumping on him and even trying to insert ice-lolly sticks into his blowhole (38) which would have been potentially life-threatening as it could have impaired the dolphin's ability to breathe and dive. There is another case, from Gran Canaria, Spain in 2001, where robust interactions with a free-swimming dolphin appear to have resulted in the death of a swimmer (39). ...
Dolphins are typically regarded as highly social animals. However, some individuals live apart from their own species and may come to socialize with people through a recognized series of stages which are presented and expanded on in this paper. The term “solitary-sociable dolphins” has been used to describe these animals and such individuals have been identified from several different species and reported in many parts of the world. In many instances, the interactions with people that may follow their original isolation, and which typically become more intense over time, have created situations where the welfare of the animal has been compromised by disturbance, injury, the feeding of inappropriate items and aggressive human behavior. Several solitary-sociable dolphins have also been deliberately injured and killed by humans. People who interact with these dolphins may also put themselves at risk of injury. This paper reports on recent cases drawing on published and unpublished sources. Since 2008, 32 solitary dolphins have been recorded including 27 bottlenose dolphins (25 Tursiops truncatus and two Tursiops aduncus), two striped dolphins and three common dolphins. Four solitary belugas have also been recorded. There are some ten solitary dolphins and one beluga known at the present time. Laws and guidelines currently in place to protect solitary-sociable dolphins need to be strengthened and interactions with people should be avoided or, at the least, carefully managed to protect both the dolphin and the humans involved in the interaction. Terms, such as disturbance and harassment which are included in laws need to be clearly defined. Additionally, management plans for solitary-sociable dolphins need to be developed and adapted on a case by case basis taking into account the individual dolphin's sex, age, personality, stage of sociability and home range. It is also important that government officials and local stakeholders work together to implement guidelines which set out how the public can observe or interact with the dolphin safely.
... While most dolphins (family Delphinidae) are known to live in groups, solitary individuals have been reported in some species, in particular bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops spp.; e.g., Dudzinski et al., 1995;Santos, 1997;Müller & Bossley, 2002). Solitary behavior may be the result of a number of different factors, such as predator pressure (Connor et al., 2000;Müller & Bossley, 2002), food availability (Müller & Bossley, 2002;Frohoff & Peterson, 2003), reproductive strategies (Müller & Bossley, 2002), human interference (Santos, 2000), disease (Baker et al., 2000), and individual traits (Connor et al., 2000;Müller & Bossley, 2002). ...
... However, negative consequences of uncontrolled exposure to humans was already reported in Brazil. Santos (1997) describes human aggressions to a solitary bottlenose dolphin called "Tião." In this case, it was reported that some bathers jumped on the dolphin and even attempted to put an ice-cream stick into its blowhole. ...
Social organization is an important feature of the behavior of most delphinids, including the rough-toothed dolphin (Steno bredanensis), although, even in social dolphins, specific circumstances may lead to solitary behavior. In these situations, a solitary dolphin may shift to interacting with humans. Between November 2018 and April 2019, we obtained seven records of the occurrence of a solitary juvenile rough-toothed dolphin in Sepetiba Bay, southeastern Brazil, within an area inhabited by a resident population of Guiana dolphins, Sotalia guianensis. The solitary dolphin occupied a small home range located in an inner area of the bay, close to a port and industrial installations. This area is known to be inhabited by shoals of mullet (Mugilidae) and is not visited frequently by the resident Guiana dolphins. The solitary rough-toothed dolphin emitted three types of vocalization: pulsed calls (N = 9), echolocation click trains (N = 12), and whistles (N = 3), and spent most of its activity time interacting with humans (42%) and foraging (32%). The area occupied by this dolphin, together with its low vocalization rate, suggest the avoidance of agonistic interactions with local Guiana dolphins. The behavior pattern presented by the solitary rough-toothed dolphin indicates the third stage of development of friendly solitary dolphin behavior. At this stage, a management plan is urgently required to avoid the negative consequences of the human-dolphin interaction.
... Injuries and/or life-threatening incidences with cetaceans involving aggressive individuals have been reported for pilot whales and bottlenose dolphins (e.g. Shane et al., 1993;Santos, 1997;Samuels et al., 2003), and unreported incidences have occurred with humpback whales off the Kingdom of Tonga (Donnelly, D. pers. comm. 1 ). ...
... underwater behaviours including fluke thrash) may not have been visible from the observation vessel. Internationally, there is concern over the growth of swim-withwhale tourism for the potential risks towards human safety (Hoyt and Parsons, 2014), as injuries from cetaceans to swimmers do occur (Shane et al., 1993;Santos, 1997). Off the Ningaloo Reef during the swim-with humpback whale trial in August 2016 two snorkelers were injured on a commercial tour after being struck by the pectoral fin of a mother humpback whale (Barnes, P., pers. ...
During the 2016 swim-with humpback whale trial in Ningaloo Marine Park, Western Australia, we assessed potential impacts on whales, risks to the safety of swimmers, and the efficacy of the Department of Parks and Wildlife trial swim-with-whale protocols. From an independent research vessel and on-board whale-watch vessels, trained observers collected group-follow data on whale behaviour in the absence ('control') and presence ('impact') of whale-watch vessels, and 'after' swim-with interactions.
... Natação com cetáceos na natureza está aumentando em popularidade (HOYT, 2001), mas, além de provocar o molestamento aos cetáceos, a natação com estes animais também pode ter consequências para os seres humanos (CONSTANTINE, 2001;SANTOS, 1997;SHANE et al., 1993). ...
... Em um caso envolvendo um golfinho nariz-de-garrafa (Tursiops truncatus), no litoral do Estado de São Paulo, vários turistas foram feridos, sendo um deles fatalmente, em virtude de realizarem comportamentos inadequados (SANTOS, 1997). ...
Entendemos que o turismo de observação de mamíferos aquáticos no Brasil pode ser tratado nos moldes do significado internacional de "Whale Watching", incluindo a observação de peixes-boi. O objetivo deste trabalho é apresentar o conhecimento atualizado sobre turismo de observação de mamíferos aquáticos com discussão sobre benefícios, impactos e estratégias de conservação desta atividade, especialmente no Brasil. A metodologia deste trabalho compreendeu amplo levantamento bibliográfico, discussão em eventos científicos, pesquisa científica e realização de visita técnica em 51 localidades de turismo de observação de mamíferos aquáticos. Apesar de existirem muitos textos sobre o ecoturismo como instrumento de conservação, ainda não existe uma conclusão única. Os benefícios podem ser psicológicos, econômicos, ambientais, fisiológicos, sociais e educacionais. Os impactos mais observados são: alterações comportamentais em resposta ao tráfego de barcos; inibição de comportamentos biologicamente importantes, como alimentação, repouso e reprodução; indução a deslocamentos desnecessários, que não ocorreria naturalmente; diminuição das oportunidades de alimentação; aumento das possibilidade de predação; diminuição do cuidado parental; lesão e mortalidade por atropelamento. Um agravante do impacto do turismo de observação de mamíferos aquáticos é que estes animais atualmente estão expostos a vários outros estressores, como mudanças climáticas, agentes patogênicos, interação com pesca, tráfego de embarcações, indústria de óleo e gás, poluição química e sonora. As estratégias para minimizar o impacto da interação humana com mamíferos aquáticos incluem a limitação do número de barcos e a frequência e duração das interações de barco, fechamento de áreas e programas de educação para visitantes e prestadores de serviço. O turismo de observação de mamíferos aquáticos no Brasil começou na Amazônia, nos anos 80, e também cresceu rapidamente. Mesmo que grande parte das interações turísticas com mamíferos aquáticos no Brasil envolva espécies ameaçadas de extinção, manifestações de perturbações e alterações comportamentais, bem como acidentes de atropelamento têm sido relatados por diversos autores brasileiros. Atualmente, a legislação de proteção a mamíferos aquáticos consiste de vários instrumentos que não atendem à preservação dos mamíferos aquáticos, principalmente em função do crescimento e diversificação do turismo de observação de mamíferos aquáticos e da falta de detalhamento do que é “molestamento intencional”. A estratégia urgente do Brasil para que o turismo de observação de mamíferos aquáticos tenha o máximo de benefícios possível e o mínimo de impacto é a edição de uma Instrução Normativa atualizada para coibir o molestamento de mamíferos aquáticos no Brasil. Whale Watching: benefits, impacts and strategies ABSTRACT We understand that the tourism of observation of aquatic mammals in Brazil can be treated of "Whale Watching", includes the observation of manatees. The objective of this work is to present the updated knowledge about aquatic mammal observation tourism with a discussion about benefits, impacts and conservation strategies of this activity, especially in Brazil. The methodology of this work included a wide bibliographical survey, discussion in scientific events, scientific research and technical visits in 51 aquatic mammal observation sites. Although there are many texts on ecotourism as a conservation tool, there is still no single decision. The benefits can be psychological, economic, environmental, physiological, social and educational. The most observed impacts are: behavioral control in response to boat traffic; Inhibition of biologically important behaviors, such as feeding, rest and reproduction; Induction to unnecessary displacements, which do not occur naturally; Decreased feeding opportunities; Increased possibilities of predation; Decreased parenting; Injury and fatalities due to running over. An aggravating impact of aquatic mammal tourism is that these animals are exposed to various other stressors such as climate change, pathogens, interaction with fishing, vessel navigation, oil and gas industry, chemical and noise pollution. Measures to minimize the impact of human interaction with aquatic mammals include a limitation on the number of vessels and a frequency and timing for boat interactions, closure of areas and education programs for visitors and service providers. The tourism of observation of aquatic mammals in Brazil began in the Amazon in the 80s, and grew rapidly. Even though most of the tourism interactions with non-Brazilian aquatic mammals involve endangered species, manifestations of disturbance and behavioral change, as well as run-off acids and have been reported by several Brazilian authors. Currently, legislation to protect aquatic mammals consists of several instruments that do not address the preservation of aquatic mammals, mainly due to the growth and diversification of aquatic mammal observation tourism and the lack of detail of what is "intentional harassment". A strategy for aquatic mammal observation tourism with maximum benefits may be a minimum impact for an edition of an Normative Instruction for the development of aquatic mammals in Brazil. KEYWORDS: Ecotourism; Benefits; Impacts; Whale; Dolphin; Manatee.
... For example, on the northwestern coast of Spain, one of the world's major seafood markets, aquaculture leads to high prey density, and dolphins are more likely to be spotted foraging inside aquaculture areas than outside aquaculture areas (López & Methion, 2017;Methion & López, 2019). However, since dolphins are social animals that display fissionfusion social structures in which individuals' associations within groups vary spatiotemporally (Connor et al., 2000), most studies have focused on the social group aspects, with numerous studies carried out on solitary individuals in different oceans globally (Lockyer, 1978;Santos, 1997;Müller et al., 1998;Eisfeld et al., 2010;Tsuji et al., 2017). However, the reasons for the individual differences remain unclear. ...
... In one case, a man died after being struck by an SSD named 'Tiao', in Brazil after the dolphin had been harassed and items forced down its blowhole. The attack was in apparent self-defence on the dolphins part, with serious injuries inflicted upon the two human victims (Santos 1997;Santos 2003). ...
... Notwithstanding the fact that whale-watching and swim-with activities may cause incidences of wildlife safety and disturbances, these activities may also imply risk of injuries inflicted by cetaceans to swimmers (e.g., Shane, Tepley, & Costello, 1993) through aggressive/threatening behaviors (review in Scheer, 2010) leading sometimes to the swimmer's death (Santos, 1997). Sprogis et al. (2020) reported humpback whale agonistic behaviors in the presence of swimmers and three incidents in Ningaloo in 2016 on snorkelers who were severely injured by a mother humpback whale. ...
Whale-watching, including swim-with-whales activities, is developing at an enormous rate in Reunion Island. This is raising concerns about its impacts on breeding humpback whales and challenging the sustainability of the activity. In 2017, a dedicated at sea patrol team, “Quietude” was created to observe, monitor and sensitize whale watchers at sea in order to improve compliance with local guidelines. In this context, the team assessed whale-watching in Reunion Island during two humpback whale breeding seasons in 2017 and 2018, between June and October. Sighted groups were mostly composed of mother/calf pairs spending most of their time resting near or at the surface. Whale-watching vessels were present in 85.1% of sightings, of which 68.4% were recreative. Swim-with-cetaceans activities were very frequently observed in 42% of sightings. Overall, compliance with the charter was as high as 68% of whale sightings with vessels/swimmers were in line with the recommendations. However, low compliance (32.8%) was observed with the specific recommendations of swim-with-cetaceans activities. Swimmers were reported in active groups displaying agonistic behaviors, which poses evident human safety concerns. Humpback whale resting and nursing behaviors were disrupted significantly by whale-watching activities. Humpback whales tended to avoid vessels and swimmers, especially when their behavior was intrusive or not compliant with the charter. Positive humpback whale responses were more likely to occur if the charter’s recommendations were not breached. Our results highlight how a non-binding regulation, with recommendations scrupulously pursued, allows for a reduction in whale-watching disturbances and supports a better tourism experience. Our results advocate for reinforcing tourism education, whale-watching adaptive management and regulations, specifically for vulnerable groups with a calf and for the swim-with-whales activities. This could be efficiently achieved by engaging all stakeholders and the permanent team on the field “Quietude” to enhance dissemination of best practices and sensitivity around sustainable values of implemented regulations.
... For example, large sharks as a group of animals are commonly portrayed as dangerous and predatory to humans whereas dolphins are depicted as friendly and safe. The reality is that both groups of animals are apex predators that hunt and kill prey to survive, and both can pose dangers to humans (Newsome et al., 2004;Gallagher et al., 2015;Santos, 1997). ...
Over the past three decades, interacting with wildlife as a tourism activity has grown significantly and has transformed from a relatively rare experience into a mainstream tourism product. Tourism opportunities to watch, photograph and otherwise interact with animals in their natural environment have grown to include a range of species and settings, including in the sea. Close encounters with marine wildlife are facilitated by a wide range of commercial operators, and many include and promote a strong adventure component. This paper provides a consideration of the issues of risk and the emerging role of the use of social media in marine wildlife tourism experiences. While the concept of ecotourism has been widely explored in wildlife tourism research, the inherited risk involved in these activities has received little attention. This is particularly the case regarding interactions with potentially dangerous wildlife in open-water environments. This aspect warrants exploration in the context of the growth of wildlife photography/videography and sharing via social media platforms, which frequently display close encounters with animals in dangerous scenarios for both people and wildlife involved.
Our compilation provides a geographical, chronological, and qualitative overview of these encounters, reviews both humans' and dolphins' deleterious behaviors during interspecific interactions and summarizes the main risks to both humans and dolphins during close encounters. Based on this review, we outline and discuss how both animal welfare and human safety should be managed such that these activities are sustainable; the demand for personal wildlife experiences continues to grow at an alarming rate and the economic pressures placed on wild animal populations run the risk of damaging the very environmental assets that support this industry if they cannot be managed effectively.
