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Two brothers have described rescuing two women from the sea after a dolphin repeatedly forced them underwater in separate incidents in Dorset
Rhys and Gareth Paterson were kayaking in Lyme Bay on Thursday when they saw the animal leap onto a swimmer’s back about 200 metres from shore.
“She was kind of gasping for air,” Rhys said. “She was terrified.”
At first, the pair thought the bottlenose dolphin, known locally as Reggie, was playing. “We thought he was doing what he normally does – just a bit of fun,” Rhys said. But after hearing the woman scream, they paddled over and saw the dolphin pushing her head below the surface.
They brought her back to land before returning to the water, where they saw the same dolphin troubling another woman who was clinging to a yellow buoy and “looking panicked”.
Rhys urged swimmers to get out of the water if they spot the animal. He said: “It is a wild animal, as exciting as it is. I think it’s up to everyone now to start respecting its space a little bit more. If we weren’t there that day I think something bad could have potentially happened.”
The Marine Management Organisation is “increasingly concerned” about the lone dolphin, and has reminded swimmers that dolphins, whales and porpoises are protected by law and warned people to keep at least 100 metres away from them.
Reggie has been a regular visitor to Lyme Bay since first appearing earlier this year. While his presence has thrilled tourists, marine experts have cautioned that repeated human contact can make dolphins lose their natural wariness and behave aggressively.
Charity Marine Connection said the animal was “playful” rather than hostile, but still dangerous. Co-founder Liz Sandeman told the BBC: “The more people that enter the water, the more he’ll become playful and boisterous. I’ve seen dolphins doing this before towards swimmers, where they’ll dunk them under the water.”
She added: “I think if they move even a quarter of the mile down the coast, that would help. He’s not adult yet, so over the coming months he will get bigger, he will become more powerful.”