Best printers for Home

Best Mixer Grinder

Best wired Earphones

Best 43 Inch TV in India

Best Wi Fi Routers

Best Home Theatre in India

Smart Watch under 5000

Best Laptops for Education

Best Laptop for Students

Deep in the chilly waters of the Baltic Sea, a solitary <keyword id="22932692" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bottlenose-dolphin" source="keywords">bottlenose dolphin</keyword> named Delle has become a subject of scientific fascination — not for his acrobatics but for his vocalisations. For years, Delle has been all alone, yet he’s been talking incessantly, a phenomenon researchers believe may stem from loneliness.<br /><br />Delle first appeared in 2019 in the Svendborgsund channel, south of Denmark’s Funen Island, far outside the typical range of bottlenose dolphins. Normally, dolphins are highly social creatures living in pods, but Delle has been swimming solo in these uncharted waters with no sign of others joining him. In late 2022, scientists decided to monitor his impact on local harbor porpoises by deploying underwater recording devices. What they found surprised them.<br /><br />“Out of curiosity, I decided to add a recorder that captures actual sounds,” explained Olga Filatova, a cetacean biologist at the University of Southern Denmark. “I thought we might pick up a few distant whistles or something along those lines. I certainly didn’t anticipate recording thousands of different sounds.”<br /><br />Over the course of 69 days between December 2022 and February 2023, researchers documented an astonishing 10,833 distinct noises from Delle, including 2,291 whistles and 2,288 burst-pulses, a rapid clicking sound often associated with aggression or social interaction. In addition, he produced 5,487 low-frequency tonal sounds and 767 percussive sounds.<br /><br />What made the study even more striking was that some of the sounds typically require a second dolphin to make sense. “These sounds are traditionally considered communicative, meaning there should be at least two dolphins ‘talking’ to each other. But Delle was completely alone,” Filatova said. Among the recorded vocalisations were three unique whistles, which dolphins use as signature calls, akin to names. “If we hadn’t known that Delle was alone, we might have concluded that a group of at least three dolphins was engaged in various social interactions.”<br /><br />At first, researchers wondered if Delle’s chatter might be directed at nearby humans, such as paddleboarders, but they also recorded his sounds at night when no humans were present. This eliminated the possibility that his vocalisations were a direct response to human activity.<br /><br />The motivations behind Delle’s vocalisations remain speculative, but several theories have emerged. Filatova posited that the sounds could be involuntary, triggered by emotions, much like humans laugh or talk to themselves when alone. Alternatively, Delle might have been calling out in the faint hope of attracting other dolphins. However, she noted that this seems unlikely given that he has been in the area for three years and would likely know by now that no other dolphins are present.<br /><br />Other experts, such as Thea Taylor of the Sussex Dolphin Project, weren’t entirely shocked by the findings. “Dolphins are very vocal animals, so I’m not overly surprised that this individual was still making sounds despite being alone,” Taylor explained.<br /><br />She added that dolphins rely heavily on sound, not just for communication but also for navigating their surroundings and hunting. The idea that Delle’s vocalisations may be an emotional outlet was particularly intriguing to Taylor. “This opens up so many questions about whether we can utilise dolphin communications to understand more about their behaviour and emotions in the wild,” she said.<br /><br />Delle’s story sheds light on a largely overlooked area of dolphin research: the lives and behaviours of solitary dolphins. As Filatova pointed out, such individuals are often seen as “outcasts” and rarely studied in depth. Yet Delle’s solitary symphony of sounds raises profound questions about loneliness, emotion, and adaptation in these intelligent marine mammals. Whether he is singing out of longing or simply navigating his aquatic world, Delle offers a poignant reminder of how much we still have to learn about the emotional lives of dolphins.<br /><br />The findings of this research have been published in <em>Bioacoustics</em>.<br />

An isolated dolphin in Denmark has been recorded making thousands of calls to himself: could it be a sign of loneliness?

<ul class="summary-list"><li>California's Central Coast beaches are littered with dead dolphins and sea lions this summer.</li><li>Large marine mammals are suffering from the effects of currently blooming neurotoxin-producing algae.</li></ul><p>Across the beaches of the central coast of California this summer, hundreds of <a href="https://www.insider.com/headless-sea-lions-are-washing-up-on-canadian-beaches-2020-7">dead sea lions</a>, dolphins, and other marine life are washing ashore while hundreds more are sickened, delirious, and seizing as rescue workers rush to try to save them. </p><p>The cause: microscopic, <a href="https://www.insider.com/health-officials-toxic-algae-blooms-can-sicken-kids-kill-pets-2022-7">neurotoxin-producing algae</a> blooming off the coast, making its way through the food chain, and infecting large marine mammals with domoic acid toxicity.</p><p><a href="https://www.insider.com/4-signs-of-unsafe-swimming-water-toxic-algae-stomach-viruses-2022-7">Harmful algal bloom</a> (HAB) events have been recorded in Southern California in 2002, 2006, 2007, 2017, and 2022 — but this year is different.</p><div type="image" title="A sick sea lion was roped off by rescue workers" height="768" width="1024" msid="101324642" hostid="261"></div><p>"I can definitely say that this is the worst outbreak that we have seen," Sam Dover, executive director of the Channel Islands Marine and Wildlife Institute, said in an email to Insider.</p><p>He added: "We have been responding to many animals that are actively showing clinical signs and die shortly thereafter. Many beaches have animals both live and dead in various states of decomposition."</p><p>The nonprofit Channel Islands Marine and Wildlife Institute, which has posted signs on beaches across the Central Coast warning visitors not to approach sick animals, has received more than 1,000 <a href="https://www.insider.com/tasmania-whales-stranded-beach-photos-rescue-efforts-mass-stranding-2022-9">reports of animals in distress</a> between June 8 through June 14, according to a report submitted to NOAA Fisheries, and continues to receive between 250 and 300 reports per day.</p><p>"It's like the waves of a tsunami keep washing over our local beaches with even more sea lions and dolphins suffering from domoic acid," read the update from CIMWI to NOAA Fisheries sent Tuesday.</p><p>As of June 27, the update read, CIMWI has responded to over 500 live sea lions exhibiting signs of domoic acid and over 150 dead sea lions in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties.</p><div type="image" title="A warning message is written in sand to prevent people from approaching a sick sea lion on the beach." height="768" width="1024" msid="101324646" hostid="261"></div>"There have also been over 30 live <a href="https://www.insider.com/twitter-people-think-killer-whales-are-orcanizing-with-dolphins-2023-6">common dolphin</a> strandings which succumbed quickly to the suspected neurotoxin. The toll for dead dolphins is up to 110. The numbers for live and dead stranded marine mammals suspected of having domoic acid rises by the hour."<u></u><p>Dover told Insider that domoic acid "comes from an algae that filter feeding fish such as anchovies and sardines that the mammals then ingest. The toxin affects the brain and results in seizures and in many cases death.  The toxin is dose dependent so it just depends on how much they eat and whether it will result in mortality."</p><p>Additional symptoms of poisoning by the toxin include lethargy, disorientation, head bobbing and weaving, bulging eyes, foaming at the mouth, and muscle spasms. Beachgoers who spot a sickened animal should keep their distance, prevent pets from approaching the creature, and report the sighting to NOAA Fisheries or organizations like CIMWI.</p><p>In typical cases, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/toxic-algae-bloom-is-killing-animals-on-the-pacific-coast-2015-8">domoic acid toxicity</a> subsides within 72 hours, and sea lions can fully recover if the toxin is eliminated from the body in urine. However, due to the massive bloom of algae containing the toxin, much of the food supply contains the contaminant, and infected creatures cannot recover on their own. </p><p>Volunteer rescuers treat sick sea life with aggressive fluid therapy to flush out their systems, anti-seizure medication if warranted, and anti-inflammatories to decrease brain swelling associated with the neurotoxin.</p><div type="image" title="Signs posted by Channel Islands Marine and Wildlife Institute warning of sick seals on the beaches of Carpinteria, California." height="2274" width="3024" msid="101324648" hostid="261"></div>Mortality rates with adult sea lions have been "significant," according to CIMWI, and animals are dying despite receiving treatment. While CIMWI volunteers are still rescuing adult sea lions, the extraordinarily high number of sick animals stranded on the beaches grows daily, so rescuers are focused on treating younger animals that will have ingested less <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/japan-poisonous-pufferfish-delicacy-expensive-cost-2019-7">toxic fish</a>. <p>"We thought last year's domoic acid event affecting Santa Barbara and Ventura was tragic," Tuesday's CIMWI update to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/noaa-opens-gulf-of-mexico-to-sustainable-aquaculture-2016-1">NOAA Fisheries</a> added. "This year's event is even more horrific. Our beautiful beaches are 'littered' with sick, dying, and deceased sea lions and dolphins."<u></u><u></u></p><p>While rescuers from CIMWI and other organizations continue working to help stranded sea lions, the reports of sick and dying creatures far outweigh what the volunteer organizations can manage. </p><p>"Our team members are physically tired and emotionally drained," CIMWI's report added. "They are 'working' harder and giving more than any one person and team should have to in order to do all they can to help these animals. There are just too many animals suffering from domoic acid with this algal bloom event."</p><h2>Why is the algae bloom so big?</h2><p>It's difficult to pinpoint exactly why this algae bloom has grown so big, said Vera Trainer, the Aquatic Sciences Director at the University of Washington. </p><p>Generally, the warmer the year, the larger the blooms, Trainer said. "We have the hottest temperature on record for the ocean at the moment. That's a contributing factor, which is caused by human impact," John Warner, CEO of the Marine Mammal Care Center, said in an <a href="https://ktla.com/news/local-news/marine-care-centers-in-socal-overwhelmed-with-sick-sea-lions-dolphins/#:~:text=%E2%80%9CIt%20is%20a%20toxic%20algal,the%20condition%20can%20be%20fatal." target="_blank" rel="noopener">interview</a> with KTLA. </p><p>Moreover, this type of algae, called Pseudo-nitzschia, acts sort of like a weed. Trainer compares it to dandelions because of how much it spreads each year, and also because it has long periods of lying low until the conditions are just right for blooming. </p><p>So it seems that right now, the conditions in the Pacific might be the perfect storm for making sea lions sick.</p>

What's killing the sea lions on some of America's safest beaches?

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Killer whales have been ramming boats and ripping off rudders in the waters near southern Spain.</li><li>Insider spoke with three orca experts to better understand why these encounters are happening. </li></ul><p>European sailors first reported a spike in orca encounters off the coasts of Spain and Portugal in 2020. The interactions have continued to grow ever since and are <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/orca-encounters-happening-every-day-near-spain-and-portugal-2023-6">happening every day, now</a>. </p><p>The killer whales are not only <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/killer-whales-severely-damaged-yacht-off-spanish-coast-latest-attack-2023-5">ramming boats</a> with their heads and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/video-orca-swims-severed-rudder-of-ship-strait-of-gibraltar-2023-6">ripping off rudders</a> with their teeth, but they've also managed to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/luna-orca-damage-ram-boats-killer-whales-wanted-to-socialize-2023-5">sink three vessels</a> so far this year.</p><p>"They clearly find a lot of pleasure in these encounters," Andrew Trites, director of the Marine Mammal Research Unit at the University of British Columbia in Canada, told Insider.</p><p>But Trites isn't talking about malicious pleasure, though it may feel like that for the people whose boats are taking a beating. Sailor Werner Schaufelberger <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/portugal-orcas-sink-a-sailboat-and-ram-another-in-atlantic-2022-8">described his encounter with orcas</a> in May as "brutal."</p><p>"They're probably socializing, yucking it up with each other about their adventures without realizing the terror they're creating in their moments of joy," Trites said. </p><p>Trites is one of several orca experts Insider spoke with who all agree the orcas are just having a good time and probably don't have any ill will against the boats or humans on board.</p><p>This idea flies in the face of a darker theory that the orcas are attacking boats because of one <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/traumatized-female-orca-behind-rise-killer-whale-attacks-scientists-2023-5">traumatized killer whale named White Gladis </a>who is taking revenge. And other <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/killer-whales-may-be-imitating-orca-striking-sinking-boats-researchers-2023-5">orcas are imitating her</a> behavior. </p><p>However, none of the experts Insider spoke with were convinced this was the case.</p><p>"I certainly think orcas are capable of complex emotions," Monika Wieland Shields, director of the Orca Behavior Institute told Insider. "But we just haven't seen anything like that anywhere else in the world. And we have given orcas plenty of reason to want to seek revenge on us."</p><div type="image" title="BLACKFISH" height="591" width="1050" msid="101065907" hostid="261" sizebytes="20560"></div><p>Shields points to the <a href="https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/environment/the-orca-and-the-orca-catcher-how-a-generation-of-killer-whales-was-taken-from-puget-sound/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">long history of humans harming the orca population</a>, from shooting them at fisheries to the years of live captures in the '60s and '70s in which humans separated orca offspring from their families to display them in aquariums. </p><p>And yet, these situations haven't resulted in wild orcas attacking boats, Shields said. Orcas in captivity have attacked and killed humans, but there are no records of <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/there-no-records-orca-ever-killing-humans-wild-why-1734489" target="_blank" rel="noopener">orcas killing humans in the wild</a>. </p><h2>The orcas are trying to play</h2><p>According to Shields, orcas' natural curiosity and playfulness are likely the cause for these encounters and not revenge. </p><p>Orcas are very social and curious animals that often engage with their environments, Shields said. </p><p>In the Salish Sea off the coast of Washington, for example, it's not uncommon for orcas to play with crab traps, dragging them around for a few minutes or hours until they eventually lose interest, according to Shields.</p><p>"To me, that's really similar to what's going on in Spain," Shields said. "It's the same type of behavior, they might be thinking, 'Hey, there's this piece of equipment in my environment, I'm going to play with it for a while then move on.'"</p><p>Hanne Strager, a mammal marine biologist and author of the book "<a href="https://www.press.jhu.edu/books/title/12901/killer-whale-journals" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Killer Whale Journals: Our Love and Fear of Ocras</a>" agrees that curiosity is the likely cause. </p><p>In fact, Strager doesn't classify these encounters as "attacks," or attempts by the orcas to harm people and their property, but rather an example of orca exploration.</p><div type="image" title="Killer whale surfacing from the water, showing its white underbelly." height="1414" width="2121" msid="101065911" hostid="261" sizebytes="113224"></div><p>"I don't doubt that it feels like an attack for the people on the boat," Strager told Insider. "But from the orca's perspective, I don't think it's aggressive. Just because it feels and looks very dramatic to us doesn't mean it is dramatic for them." </p><h2>Orcas find boats stimulating </h2><p>Experts agree orcas are definitely targeting sailboats, but probably because there is something stimulating and exciting about "playing" with boats that causes them to repeat the behavior and teach it to others in their pod. </p><p>According to Trites, orcas might simply enjoy the sensation of ramming into boats.</p><p>"Orcas are very tactile and sensitive to touch," Trites told Insider. "In my research I've been struck by how often they touch each other and run into each other while swimming. It's just like with humans. We need to be touched." </p><p>Orcas might also be <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/pod-of-orca-whales-chasing-a-speedboat-2014-3">enticed by a boat speeding</a> through the water and get a thrill out of chasing it, Trites said. In fact, the more people on a boat make a commotion or try to speed away, the more exciting the event is for the animal and the more likely they are to try to ram the boat again, Trites said.</p><p>"You can't outrun a killer whale," Trites said. "Just <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/orca-killer-whale-attack-boat-expert-advice-2023-5">turn off your engine</a>, let your rudder up, and become as boring as possible."</p><h2>Playful, or not, this behavior could put orca lives at risk </h2><p>While orca experts have good reason to think the animals are just being playful, ultimately, it's impossible to know <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-orcas-are-apex-predator-ocean-brain-scans-2023-5">what they're thinking</a>. </p><div type="image" title="Two orcas swimming in the water with a rainbow in between them." height="1412" width="2122" msid="101065913" hostid="261" sizebytes="555684"></div><p>And this uncertainty has people feeling uneasy, especially as these encounters become more prevalent and potentially dangerous for both people and orcas. </p><p>"I think tensions are escalating," Shields said. "And I think it's just a matter of time before a whale gets hurt or gets killed."</p><p>With better tracking of these incidents, hopefully, sailors can avoid high-risk areas and after enough "boring" encounters with boats, the orcas will eventually move on, Strager said. </p><p>Until then, Trites said it's important to remember these are <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/status-review-finds-endangered-killer-whales-still-face-high-risk-extinction" target="_blank" rel="noopener">endangered creatures</a> who likely aren't out to hurt us.</p>

Orca attacks on boats aren't out of revenge, killer whale experts say. They're just having fun.

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><ul><li><strong>A killer whale learned how to speak like a human.</strong></li><li><strong>Wikie, the 16-year-old orca, is believed to be the first of her kind to do so.</strong></li><li><strong>Protesters say this was only possible due to her inhumane captivity.</strong></li><li><strong>They said if we could understand Wikie "we would hear her calling to be free."</strong></li></ul><p><br>Wikie, a 16-year-old killer whale in France, <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/killer-whale-in-france-learns-to-copy-human-speech-2018-1">made headlines on Wednesday</a> after audio was released showing that she'd learned how to mimic human speech.</br></p><p>But while many were amazed by the sound of an orca recreating words including "hello," "bye bye," and "one, two, three," animal rights activists were furious.</p><p>Four animal rights organisations told Business Insider that Wikie's training was cruel and inhumane, and that she should be free rather than in captivity.</p><p>Several of them said that her human speech should be interpreted as a cry for freedom rather than a willing interaction with humanity.</p><p>Wikie lives at Marineland, an amusement park in Antibes, south of France. She was born there in 2001 and has never lived anywhere else, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtGpXpFzPHA">according to One Voice</a>, an animal rights organisation in France.</p><p>Here's how Wikie sounds:</p><h2>"Neither scientific nor humane"</h2><p>The Earth Island Institute, a California-based environmental group, and the London-based World Animal Protection also criticised Wikie's performances at Marineland.</p><p>Mark J Palmer, an associate director at the Earth Island Institute, told BI that Wikie's story was "a circus act." He said:</p><p style="padding-left: 30px;">"Teaching a captive orca to make sounds like a human is neither scientific nor humane. It is a circus act and a distraction from the issue of captivity."</p><p style="padding-left: 30px;">"These orcas are too big, too wide-ranging, and have social bonds that have been ripped apart by captivity. All so they can spend the rest of their shortened lives in small concrete tanks doing meaningless experiments and doing repetitive tricks to entertain humans."</p><h2>"Imprisoned and denied everything that's natural"</h2><p>Elisa Allen, the director of&#xa0;PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), said it was "deeply ironic" that Wikie is seen as a scientific breakthrough, but remains "imprisoned" at a marine park.</p><p>Allen told BI:</p><p style="padding-left: 30px;">"Orcas have always had their own complex means of communicating with each other using a language that humans can't understand, and it's now been shown that in captivity, they try to get our attention by carefully mimicking human speech. [...]</p><p style="padding-left: 30px;">"How deeply ironic that this research, which speaks volumes of the emotional intelligence of orcas, was conducted in a marine park's cement cell, where they're imprisoned and denied everything that's natural and important to them in order to make money from tourists.</p><p style="padding-left: 30px;">"And how sad that while the orca Wikie was being studied, all she could do - other than try to get the researchers' attention in a way that humans themselves can't even figure out how to reciprocate - was swim in tight circles in her own diluted waste.</p><p style="padding-left: 30px;">"If we had the intelligence to understand her own sophisticated language, we would hear her calling to be free."</p><h2>Captivity "should come to an end"</h2><p>Claire Bass, the UK Director of Humane Society International said that Wikie is "as tragic as she is fascinating."</p><p>Bass said: "She is certainly further proof that these are highly intelligent mammals whose captivity in marine parks in the twenty-first century should come to an end."</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>Dr Neil D'Cruze, a global wildlife advisor at World Animal Protection, said the news of the scientific breakthrough was "bittersweet."</p><p>He said:</p><p style="padding-left: 30px;">"On the one hand, the finding that orcas can imitate human words excites us. This is evidence of complex communication and learning ability in a species that was previously unknown.</p><p style="padding-left: 30px;">"However, on the other hand, this research was conducted on a captive orca held at Marineland Aquarium in Antibes, France - a place that forces dolphins to perform unnatural behaviour in shows.</p><p style="padding-left: 30px;">"We hope that this exciting new understanding about orcas does not end up fuelling the use of these majestic, intelligent animals in the entertainment industry."</p><p>The Marine Conservation Society also tweeted: "Can't they hear it say 'set me free'"?</p><p>&#xa0;</p><p>Business Insider has contacted Marineland in Antibes for comment.</p><div></div><div></div>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/lucid-dreaming-how-to-control-your-dreams-2018-1">How you can control your dreams - an expert explains how lucid dreaming works</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div></hr>

You Searched For "Marine mammal emotions" and got 4 results

An isolated dolphin in Denmark has been recorded making thousands of calls to himself: could it be a sign of loneliness?

BI India Bureau

What's killing the sea lions on some of America's safest beaches?

Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert

Orca attacks on boats aren't out of revenge, killer whale experts say. They're just having fun.

Erin Heger

A killer whale learning to speak human words is a 'circus act' to distract from the cruelty of her captivity, say animal rights activists

Alexandra Ma

Popular Keywords

Buying Guides