Sea life – a day with the dolphins
Letter from the editor
On Bob’s birthday this year, we decided to take a dolphin cruise out of Gardner’s Basin in Atlantic City. I resisted the idea at first because I tend to get sea sick, but the risk seemed worth it for a little of the magic that dolphin sightings offer. It turned out that I didn’t get sea sick at all and we had a fantastic time.
If I thought I loved the sight of a dolphin from 100 feet away, I was in for a treat, seeing them up close and personal. I wasn’t sure what to expect as we embarked on the dolphin cruise. I thought maybe we would see a dolphin or two. But to my delight, we witnessed dozens of dolphins that gracefully sailed through the water alongside of the boat. They seemed as interested in engaging with us, as we were with them.
Captain Jeff George, owner of Atlantic City Cruises, taught us quite a bit about dolphins during the cruise as well.
Did you know that the bottlenose dolphins that hug our coastlines keep the sharks out? The dolphins are likely the reason that there hasn’t been a shark attack since 1916. Sharks and dolphins are natural enemies and it surprised me to find that dolphins are more feared by the sharks than the other way around.
Dolphins travel in groups known as pods and defend one another in times of danger. This gives dolphins an advantage over sharks who are less likely to travel in a group. Dolphins use their strong snouts as powerful weapons to ram sharks, targeting their soft underbellies and gills to injure them.
Dolphins have even been known to rescue humans. There are many documented cases of dolphins saving humans from shark attacks. The dolphins form a hedge of protection around a human in danger, encircling them while escorting them to safety and keeping the sharks at bay.
Dolphins are social mammals that interact with one another, swim together, protect each other, and hunt for food as a team. Most pods contain anywhere from 2 to 30 dolphins.
There is no place like our coastline. Look around and discover its beauty and wildlife every chance you get this summer.
Peace & Love,
Cindy
