Dolphin Final Mix 4M
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[00:00:40] Katrin: Okay. 1, 2, 3. Four on the bow.

[00:00:46] They're very complex animals and the fact that they're not just wonderful, happy animals, actually, I feel makes them more interesting and you never have. You never have sort of the same encounter twice, every time you go out it's something slightly different that you can see.

[00:01:08] Rosie: Hello, I'm Ranger Rosie Holdsworth and today we're uncovering a hidden kingdom beneath the waves of West Wales. A society based on relationships and communication that can also be key to a youngster's survival. This is the Wild Tale of Dolphin Social Networks.

[00:01:33] It's early in the morning in Cardigan Bay. The sun has just started to creep over the hills, turning the clouds a candyfloss pink. Despite the ominous waves further out, the water in the bay is barely disturbed by a ripple. At the end of a curved pier, a group wrapped in blankets and clutching mugs of coffee clamber on board a small white catamaran with the name Dreamcatcher emblazoned on the side.

[00:02:02] They're part of a crew for Sea Watch, a charity that tracks marine mammals in an area that hosts one of just two semi resident populations of perhaps the ocean's most loved and misunderstood creature: bottlenose dolphins.

[00:02:19] Bottlenose dolphins are famed for all kinds of social behaviours rarely identified in the animal kingdom, like grief, sex for pleasure, and ever shifting social groups. Unlike other cetaceans, cetaceans is the name given to whales and dolphins, bottlenose dolphin societies are based on individual relationships.

[00:02:43] Pods are mostly used for feeding, fun, and in other parts of the world, protection from sharks. But in UK waters, where a dolphin's only real threat is those created by humans, why are pods still so commonly seen? How are these social networks created, and why are they so vital for a calf's survival?

[00:03:06] It's late autumn, which means it's the tail end of calving season, and the Sea Watch researchers are setting off towards those ominous waves to try and track these complicated creatures.

[00:03:17] Katrin: Um, I usually lead the surveys, so I'm the monitoring officer. We have Claire, who's our research assistant, and then we have our team of interns.

[00:03:25] Rosie: This is Katrin Lohrengol, who for the past decade has led these dolphin surveys. Today Katrin looks particularly prepared, bringing with her clipboards, a huge camera. And of course, layers upon layers of warm clothing.

[00:03:38] Katrin: Um, while we're out on a survey, we'll usually have two sets of observers. So two primary observers on the, on top of the boat.

[00:03:49] We're going to be looking out for any marine mammals, bottlenose dolphins, harbour porpoise, and anything else that we might see. Then if we see dolphins, we'll usually stop the boat and we'll approach them and try and do photo IDs. So we'll try and take pictures of their dorsal fins, which we use to identify individual dolphins.

[00:04:05] Rosie: There's a lot riding on today's survey. As the season comes to a close and the autumn days grow colder, and as the weather becomes more unpredictable as our climate reaches breaking point, the conditions for surveys to be carried out are increasingly rare. The research Katrin and her team do is our only window into the world of Cardigan Bay dolphins.

[00:04:26] Once, there were bottlenoses in every estuary in the UK. But overfishing, boat traffic, and warming waters has led to just two remaining populations of semi resident bottlenoses. SeaWatch's work is crucial. It has led to Cardigan Bay becoming a special area of conservation. Somewhere that bottlenoses can thrive.

[00:04:47] But monitoring dolphins is hard. One of the reasons these social networks remain largely a mystery to us is that much of it takes place underwater. And the dolphins travel hundreds of miles in the open ocean each year. Katrin and her team at Sea Watch are offered tiny glimpses of their lives just when they come across them on the surface.

[00:05:12] But before Katrin can tell us how they piece together these sightings to connect the dots between the dolphins, suddenly the boat leaps into action.

[00:05:22] Charly: Katrin I just saw them over there, behind us.

[00:05:26] Jasmine: We're seeing a pod of bottlenose dolphins, um, probably about 15. Um, they're currently hanging out by the boat, showing off a lot.

[00:05:34] I just got it on me.

[00:05:40] Rosie: This is Jasmine, one of the interns on board, who was just splashed by the disappearing tail of a bottlenose dolphin. Jasmine's just finished her Masters and is looking to take her first steps into the world of conservation. The other interns are all in a similar position, figuring out what they want to do next, gaining experience and, judging by the feeling on board, forming a strong social group all of their own.

[00:06:04] Jasmine: Um, I would say this is probably like them surfacing a lot. We've seen a lot of tail slaps against the water. And then we've also seen some jumping. Out of the water so like fully breaching along with them. I think just socializing with each other as well swimming with each other swimming Yeah, there's a nice tail slap then

[00:06:29] Rosie: The dolphins are chasing alongside the boat playfully leaping through the water A complicated web of slaps, rolls and bellies flying through the air.

[00:06:41] Jasmine: It is so good, your first time seeing them, like, it never gets old either.

[00:06:47] Rosie: As the bottlenose dolphins disappear beneath the waves, Katrin who's been poised with a camera, deftly leaping about the boat to get the best angle, has a chance to rest and tell us what makes and breaks a dolphin society.

[00:07:01] Katrin: Bottlenose dolphins live in what's called a fission fusion society, so it's not like, for example, how we'd see in killer whales, matrilinear. The connections that we see are often a lot less strong, a lot less long lasting, with exceptions.

[00:07:18] With fission fusion societies, what we see is different animals coming together, depending on what behaviors they're doing. So, for example, they will form a big group when they're feeding and then split off again. But then over the years, they will form more long lasting associations. There's some males that we've seen a lot of over the years.

[00:07:36] A couple of males, Dumbledore and Frodo, which we often see together, and they tend to be quite interactive. They come to the boat and they like to show off, interact with the boat both, and socialize with each other. and other animals we never see together. So that's the way we start looking at social interactions between them and how the population is structured.

[00:07:57] Rosie: Sea Watch has a vast catalogue of dolphin sightings and behaviour notes. Each photo ID of a fin contributes to a wider picture of which dolphin is doing what, who they're hanging out with, and at this time of year, if they're having calves.

[00:08:12] Katrin: There's quite a few mums that we do recognise. For example, one of the most well known animals in the Bay at the moment is Ghost, and she has a very recognisable dorsal fin.

[00:08:22] She's got like a white tip and then two big white bars at the bottom of her fin, so you can really easily see her from quite a distance and identify her.

[00:08:31] Rosie: Katrin has watched ghosts become a mother three times. The first calf, Casper, was born while Katrin was a research assistant, her second summer in Cardigan Bay.

[00:08:42] The crew began to spot ghosts pale dorsal fin accompanied by the tiny face of a newborn, foetal folds along its side showing exactly how it was rolled up in the womb. But the crew began to spot ghosts on her own more and more, until it became clear Casper hadn't made it. It's not uncommon for a dolphin's first calf not to survive.

[00:09:08] Dolphin motherhood has a steep learning curve and the threats to a calf are innumerable. But now Katrin gets to see Ghost with her three year old calf, Spirit. Spirit's become a bold and playful character under Ghost's careful, more practiced watch. Perhaps it's unsurprising that as dolphin societies morph and change, this is a bond that seems to last.

[00:09:33] Katrin: We see longer lasting bonds between moms and calves. Female calves in particular, we think, will come back to their mothers when they're older. We know bottlenose dolphins have what's called a signature whistle. So there's essentially like names. There have been some studies that have shown that bottlenose dolphin females will actually whistle to their calves while the calf is still in their womb, so that the calf will presumably learn the mother's whistle and know how to identify her.

[00:10:01] Rosie: Dolphins are the only other animal, except humans, to have been recorded naming their children with unique calls. These calls are vital to communication between dolphins. There's been reports of dolphins working together during feeding and play to call one another. And there's even been some evidence of dolphin mothers speaking baby ese to help their calves learn to communicate.

[00:10:24] It's an example of bottlenose dolphins unique parenting style. As dolphin calves grow up, mothers gradually give them more and more space, leaving them to form their own connections, their own relationships.

[00:10:37] Katrin: We do see babysitting occur quite heavily within pods, so other females will definitely babysit for other females.

[00:10:45] We've seen it a couple of times where we've had females with more than one calf with them and then later on the other female will turn up and come and take the calf away. So they do provide what's called alloparental care. We have had that in the past when we were, when we've been on survey and we were approaching animals to do photo ID for quite a while, the only pictures we could get was of calves because the mums seems, seem to have gone further inshore and had just left the calves to do what they were doing around the boats and the calves were having a great time.

[00:11:14] So really it just never gets boring.

[00:11:18] Rosie: While the dolphins may never get boring, the long hours on the boat start to drag. It begins to feel like a familiar road trip, with music, giddiness, deep conversations and sleeping within moments. And occasionally, someone turning green, sitting in the wind, and breathing deeply.

[00:11:41] As the boat turns onto a new route, scouring the sea that is starting to calm. Claire, the research assistant on board, stands at the ready with a camera in hand. Throughout the morning, she's been the guiding force for the team of interns, just as ready with snacks and songs as she is with the rota. She says the last group of interns would call her mum.

[00:12:02] And although it was a nickname she took on begrudgingly, it's easy to see why. Over the course of the summer, Claire has had hundreds of dolphin sightings in all kinds of groups. But there's something that stood out to her.

[00:12:17] Claire: I think I've noticed a lot of maternity pods. Especially here, we've had at least two newborn bottlenose this season.

[00:12:24] So it's really, really such a privilege to see all their different behaviours. Whether it's just, like, curiosity from the boats, whether they're learning to play and everything's new to them. They're still learning how to breathe properly and swim because dolphins are, they're conscious breathers. They have to think every breath they take.

[00:12:41] It's just amazing to see.

[00:12:44] Rosie: Bottlenose dolphin calves stay with their mothers for a long time, averaging three years. The reason this bond is so long lasting is that there's a lot to learn about being a dolphin. Many aspects are specific to the parts of the world that they're in, and to the dolphins that are around them.

[00:13:00] Learning to forage and feed is so important, but there's another element that is just as crucial.

[00:13:06] Claire: Behavioural transmission within their, their society is, is so important. They teach each other how to hunt, how to play. Like it's um, whenever you take specific individuals out of a pod, it does have an impact.

[00:13:23] They're incredibly intelligent. Too intelligent, I think. Yeah. But they're socializing. It's really interesting to see whenever they, like, present their bellies or their, um, what I like to call it's like dolphin soup and all you can see is like tails and bubbles splashing.

[00:13:38] Rosie: Cardigan Bay bottlenoses are also special for another reason.

[00:13:43] Claire: And the fact that they're also, because of the temperate waters, and how much fish is available, they're also the fattest in the world. When that huge bottlenose, it breached, I think you don't realise, like, they can be, like, four metres. They're so big. And even just its sheer, like, width of the dolphin is so chunky.

[00:14:03] It's not the technical term, but, yeah.

[00:14:07] Rosie: Their size and intelligence are part of the reason that dolphins are so beloved. Their spectacular tricks, their playfulness with each other and with humans. Intelligence, however, seems to come with a more ruthless side.

[00:14:21] Claire: Whenever we're doing like photo ID and they have like different, like, rake marks, so they, like, the rake marks with their teeth, um, while they're socialising, or even if it's like more aggressive behaviour, they're quite a dominant species.

[00:14:34] I mean, they're the apex predator of the bay. They don't really have any other threats. Maybe their other threat would be another angry bottlenose dolphin.

[00:14:46] Rosie: These rake marks are a vital clue to unpicking the relationship between dolphins. It's often how individual dolphins can be identified, because these bite marks stay with them for life. This darker side of dolphin behaviour reveals something about why these social networks are so important. It isn't just protection from threats, it's protection from each other.

[00:15:08] And for calves who are yet to learn the complicated dynamics between each dolphin, this protection is vital.

[00:15:17] Claire: There is, um, infanticide, which happens a lot with, um, within the males, they try and commit infanticide against newborns, but this is they are a promiscuous species. They don't necessarily know whose newborn belongs to who. I think there was a, there was an incident in the bay.

[00:15:40] Rosie: A newborn was swimming near the boat with its mother and another female. The crew noticed how tightly sandwiched the calf was between these two dolphins. They'd never seen anything like it. A group of dolphins swam around the trio and they started to try and breach coming right out of the water and almost landing on the calf.

[00:16:02] As the circling dolphins continued to come head to head with the newborn and its protectors it became evident what they were seeing. This was an attempt at infanticide. A bottlenose dolphin with a well placed ram of their head can kill an animal twice its size. So the only thing between this tiny calf and mortal peril was its mother and the other dolphin committed to its protection.

[00:16:30] Claire: It wasn't successful, but you know, you can see it. It does happen where, um, the aggression is turned towards the newborns because they're an easy target. And this is why it's so important for them to stay within their maternity pods because they have protection from each other.

[00:16:44] Rosie: In a bay without sharks, the biggest threat to a bottlenose dolphin is another bottlenose dolphin.

[00:16:49] The male's drive for mating is perhaps the cause of infanticide. Dolphin mothers invest a lot of time into their calves, so while they raise a calf, they're disinterested in mating. So while the maternity pods are crucial for the transmission of behaviour, learning to forage, socialise and for some much needed respite for dolphin mothers, they're also a necessity for these calves to stay alive.

[00:17:13] Ghost, the dolphin who lost her first calf, has since been an extremely successful mother thanks in no small part to her relationship with other mothers. She's often sighted with Berry and her calf Luna, or Tally and her calf Summer. These mothers aren't just babysitters, they're bodyguards.

[00:17:35] As the day draws to a close, the sun starts to lower itself into the horizon. Hours and hours have passed since a fin has broken the water. The only key to understanding these ever shifting societies is through this vital research. And as the season comes to a close, this could be the last opportunity to witness their social networks in action.

[00:17:57] As each moment passes, that tiny glimpse into their world feels like it's slipping away. The team are tired, so my producer Marnie offers to take a shift looking out for dolphins. Although that job sounds idyllic, the bench recitings is perched right on top of the boat, exposed to the wind, and its height means you can feel every single rock and roll of the waves.

[00:18:22] Sitting with one of the interns, Charlie, she tells Marnie that the bench is famed for seasickness and numb fingers.

[00:18:31] 55 minutes into their hour long shift, all they've seen is a fishing boat in the distance. The only sound, the drone of the engine.

[00:18:40] Marnie: Is that a dolphin? Oh my god, we saw dolphins!

[00:18:58] Rosie: This sighting is different. The boat is completely surrounded by dolphins, moving swiftly from group to group. Deciding who to follow proves tricky. But then a few smaller pairs and trios merge a few hundred metres away from the boat. Drawn together by something.

[00:19:19] Katrin: Uh, so we have quite a large group of dolphins with us, Uh, probably about, I don't know, Uh, probably another 15 with, uh, youngsters.

[00:19:29] I have seen a couple of those same ones that we had this morning, but there's definitely new ones, and that's To be expected because, um, dolphins live in a fission fusion society. So this morning they would have, they were associating with other dolphins. And there's a couple that have joined the couple that have left now.

[00:19:48] Um, some of the calves are having a lot of fun bow riding on the boat at the moment. Um, and now they seem to have dispersed a little bit more again. When they're dispersed like this, um, it can be an indication that they're going after, after food especially because they seem to be coming up quite irregularly but staying in the same general area.

[00:20:12] There we go, over there.

[00:20:14] Rosie: Watching the dolphin society shift and merge in real time is something to behold. It feels like you can see the connections between the animals, the lines drawn between them, but there's a sharp edge to their interactions now. You notice that the calves are never left without a small group.

[00:20:31] Dolphins are almost a creature of legend, famed for their intelligence and compassion. But, as with many intelligent creatures, aggression seems to come alongside it. Katherine has witnessed dolphins in all their behaviours, seen a suspected attempt on a calf's life, and experienced the joy of dolphins play.

[00:20:50] Even had a jellyfish thrown at her by a dolphin. Producer Marnie asks her, What do you want people to understand about these complicated creatures?

[00:20:59] Katrin: Although bottlenose dolphins might not be quite what people think they are, so they're a little bit more aggressive than people would like to think, that doesn't make them Any less worth conserving, and the animals we have here are quite unique in the fact that we only have two semi resident populations of bottlenose dolphins around the UK.

[00:21:18] And we've got one of them here, so it's very important that we continue to have them here and preserve them for future generations.

[00:21:26] Rosie: The urge to anthropomorphise these dolphins is strong. Their behaviours and social structures so closely mirror our own that it's really hard not to feel acutely impacted watching them.

[00:21:37] But Katrin points out that these dolphins have a greater role to play and the complexity of their relationships, that feeling of soaring joy as they leap together out of the water, or that can't look from behind your hands fear for a calf on the receiving end of their aggression, plays a huge role in the conservation of Cardigan Bay.

[00:21:56] Katrin: By putting in place conservation measures, we're not just protecting the dolphins, we are also protecting critical habitats. So they're really a flagship species for conservation. And we're just particularly lucky that we are working with them.

[00:22:12] Rosie: As Katrin, Claire and their team head back in, the veil of water and mystery is thrown back over the dolphins. Winter makes these surveys impossible, so the fate of the calves we've seen today won't be known until next season. But it looks as though they've got a strong social group around them. And today, for a brief moment, we've got a small glimpse into the networks that hold together this society beneath the waves.

[00:22:37] Thanks

[00:22:55] for joining me in this wild tale. Do you have an amazing story about the natural world? I'd love to hear from you. You can find us on Instagram, at wildtalesnt. Where you'll also find behind the scenes moments, nature's giants, and the micro wonders that make our world the place it is. Use the hashtag WildTalesWednesdays or email podcasts at nationaltrust.

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[00:24:32] I did once get a salmon thrown at me by a, by a bottlenose dolphin. Um, true fact. It was a massive salmon as well. It was like, yeah, if you'd bought that in, uh, bought that in the fishmongers, you'd be like 40 quid down the, the spout. Hang on. I'm recording! Yeah, have fun.

[00:24:56] Yes, I was sitting with a blanket on my head. This is how I work now. This is me.