Study of Impacts of Swim With Wild Dolphin Tours

Disturbance to Resting Marine Mammals May be Affecting Populations

Jul 28, 2009

Swim with dolphin programs are extremely popular in the wild. But a study in the Red Sea looked at negative impacts on the animals and noted that management is needed.

Swim with dolphin programs in marine parks such as Discovery Cove in Florida and SeaLife Park in Oahu can easily control how much time each dolphin spends in close contact with people. The same is not true, however, in the case of wild dolphin populations, and many of the places where the dolphins are found close to shore are important resting areas.

Spinner dolphins (Stenella longirostris), such as those found at the Samadai Reef in Egypt, spend the night foraging and come in to rest in areas where they are unlikely to be disturbed by deepwater sharks, which prey on them. Disturbance of wild dolphins at rest may compromise their health or cause them to abandon the safe resting area.

Samadai Reef Swim With Dolphins Issues

Prior to implementing a management program for the Samadai reef in Egypt, more than 800 people had been recorded swimming with the dolphins in a single day. With no restrictions in place there was concern as the dolphin population was declining there.

The management plan separated the reef into zones, based on the dolphins’ use of the area, provided a code of conduct for swimming with the dolphins, restricted access to certain hours and limited the number of boats, divers and snorkelers on the reef per day.

The Spinner Dolphins Study at Samadai Reef

Noted marine mammal researcher Giuseppe Notarbartolo di Sciara spent two years studying the impact of human interaction on this population of dolphins. In a review of other studies of swim with dolphin programs on wild species, Notarbarolo di Sciara found mixed results, with some dolphins or whales showing initial interest in human interaction, followed by neutral behavior and eventually avoidance of humans. These differences may be species related or may be affected by the type of dolphins being approached.

At Samadai reef, 75% of the area is closed to swim with dolphin tours, with a small area set aside for such activities under the direction of a certified guide. From the initial study at Samadai reef, it appears that three factors were important in dolphin numbers stabilizing in the area:

The study also found that the dolphins tend to become active around midday but linger in the area until late afternoon. Adjusting the timing of swim programs to the hours when the dolphins are awake may result in less disturbance, and it may be possible to extend the hours that people can be in the water later in the day.

Restrictions Being Considered for Wild Swim With Dolphin Activities in Hawaii

As numbers of tourists wanting the same swim with dolphin experience in Hawaiian waters increases, the National Marine Fisheries Service is considering similar regulations for known spinner dolphin resting areas there. Similar studies will be important in determining where swim with dolphin tours could be conducted without negative impact on the dolphins.

Interaction With Other Marine Mammal Species Also Needs Management

In Florida, swim with manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris) tours are also under fire, as enforcement of the rules of engagement is problematic. And in the Pacific Island states, new marine wildlife viewing guidelines are being developed, largely as a result of the recent discovery of a significant group of Irrawaddy River Dolphins (Orcaella brevirostris) in Bangladesh.

Clearly there is great interest in connecting with marine mammals in the wild, but those interactions need to be controlled to prevent harm to the animals involved.

The copyright of the article Study of Impacts of Swim With Wild Dolphin Tours in Wildlife Preservation is owned by Dawn M. Smith. Permission to republish Study of Impacts of Swim With Wild Dolphin Tours in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.