A bottlenose dolphin filmed alongside swimmers in Dorset that now appears to be “targeting women in wetsuits” could pose a threat to humans, experts have warned.
The animal, which tourists have named Reggie, has been filmed playing and dancing alongside swimmers off Lyme Bay. Crowds have gathered to witness his antics after a video of him playing with swimmers went viral.
However, marine experts have warned that Reggie could turn aggressive due to the number of people interacting with him and this could cause “serious injuries”.
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“For the safety of everyone, please keep away from the dolphin”, one charity said. It also warned that disturbing a dolphin was illegal.
The dolphin has already been photographed with injuries that appear to have been caused by a boat’s propeller.
Rhys Paterson, 32, said he saw the dolphin repeatedly jumping on a woman in the water and was forced to intervene while he was kayaking this summer. “It scared me to death — oh my goodness!” the woman can be heard saying in a video filmed on August 14.
Paterson said the incident was not a one-off and Reggie appeared to be “targeting women in wetsuits”. “We saved two swimmers who were fairly deep, where the dolphin kept jumping on them,” he said. “The dolphin was basically drowning this woman — it kind of jumped on her back four times.
Rhys Paterson said he had to intervene after the dolphin repeatedly jumped on a woman
RHYS PATERSON/SWNS
“We had been following the dolphin for a little bit, because obviously it’s quite a local legend at the minute. But when we realised it wasn’t playing, it was quite a big shock. People need to understand that it’s not an amusement arcade. It’s a wild animal. It can snap all of a sudden.”
The dolphin appeared in a viral clip earlier this month in the bay alongside Lynda MacDonald, her partner, her son and his girlfriend as they were out for a swim. The dolphin bobbed in and out of the water, playfully engaging them and receiving belly rubs.
Though the interaction appeared jovial and harmless, the Marine Management Organisation (MMO), a government-backed agency responsible for England’s seas, has issued a strict warning that such encounters “can harm dolphins, leading to injury, death, or aggression”.
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The MMO said the public should “never swim with, touch, feed or approach dolphins. If a dolphin approaches you, calmly leave the area”. It added: “Dolphins may seem friendly but they are wild animals. The dolphin in Lyme Bay has already been injured by a suspected boat propeller. Let’s protect them by keeping our distance — and please share this message to respect their space.”
Orca, a marine conservation charity, added: “The advice is for the public not to approach the dolphin or to seek out the dolphin. If the dolphin approaches people in or on the water then the advice is to calmly leave the area.
“This is a wild animal and a large, robust animal. Interacting with the dolphin could result in serious injuries to both people and the dolphin. There have already been reports of the animal’s behaviour escalating, with people being held underwater, and the dolphin now shows signs of injury too, likely from a boat propeller. For the safety of everyone, please keep away from the dolphin.
“It is important to remind people that deliberate and intentional disturbance of bottlenose dolphins is a legal offence in England and will result in prosecution.”
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Bottlenose dolphins are native to British shores, can reach up to 13ft in length and typically weigh about 500kg. It is illegal to intentionally or recklessly kill, injure or disturb dolphins, whales and porpoises under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. Approaching or recklessly disturbing a dolphin can result in a prison sentence of up to six months and an unlimited fine.