FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 19, 2011
Media Contact: Mary Stella, Director of Media & Marketing
305-289-1121, ext. 254
Email: media@dolphins.org
Dolphin Research Center Adds Family Members and New Features in 2011
Grassy Key ... Dolphin Research Center (DRC) has seen a number of new developments in the beginning months of 2011. The nonprofit marine mammal education and research facility has adopted a wild dolphin that was rescued during the Gulf oil spill last year, and a sea lion who was a repeat strander in California. A major research study was published. The center added a Sprayground feature to its grounds and developed a new interactive program for guests. All of these activities are completely mission-based and have captured the interest of visitors world-wide.
Since being founded in 1984, DRC has often opened its lagoons to marine mammals in need of new homes. Lina, a young female California sea lion, and Louie, a young Atlantic bottlenose dolphin, were two such animals. Lina was seen several times, alone and underweight, at various locations in California. Each time, she was brought to stranding centers for rehabilitation, but when personnel later released her back into the ocean, she eventually stranded again. Finally, federal agencies agreed that she needed to be relocated to a facility so Dolphin Research Center offered to take her into their colony. She arrived early in January and is happily getting to know DRC's other sea lions, Karen and Kilo.
Louie was discovered stranded on an isolated beach in Port Fourchon, Louisiana on September 2, 2010. He was coated with oil from the Gulf oil spill and was also injured, most likely by larger male dolphins. Rescuers brought him to a Louisiana stranding and rehabilitation center for treatment. Louie was believed to be only about a year old at the time of his rescue. At that young age, dolphin calves still depend on their mothers and other dolphins in their pods. It was determined by federal agencies that Louie did not have the necessary skills to survive on his own. Dolphin Research Center indicated interest in adopting the little dolphin and in early February he was flown from Louisiana to the Florida Keys on a United States Coast Guard jet. After gradually acclimating to the new environment, Louie is now in the lagoons making friends with other members of his new dolphin family.
Over the years, Dolphin Research Center's reputation as a leader in the field of dolphin cognition research has grown. In January, DRC announced that its most recent study, Blindfolded Imitation in a Bottlenose Dolphin, had been published by the International Journal of Comparative Psychology (2010, 23, 671-688). The ability to imitate is extremely rare in the animal kingdom. Chimpanzees have shown a slight ability, but only humans and dolphins are really good at imitation. DRC's study demonstrated that not only can dolphins imitate, but they can do so without actually seeing the behavior they copy. Since they were not using their eyesight, the center believes they must have used sound — either echolocation, which is their biological sonar, or the characteristic sound that a behavior makes — to identify an action and then imitate it. Interest in this story was so intense that news stories ran on television and in newspapers, magazines and Internet sites around the world.
Daily visitors to Dolphin Research Center are clearly fascinated by the dolphins and sea lions, and exhibit a keen interest in their mental and physical abilities. This interest motivated DRC to develop a new interactive program called Dolphin Explorer. In Dolphin Explorer, guests participate in actual research-related activities. Paired with research staff and trainers, the visitors work hands-on with the dolphins while learning more about dolphin cognition and how DRC observes and studies these amazing marine mammals.
Providing an interesting, fun visitor experience is a key part of Dolphin Research Center's success. To that end, the center made a big splash with the grand opening of a new Sprayground. A giant orange seahorse, blue dolphin flukes and other tropical or marine-life features spray jets and streams of water while jump pads play whale, dolphin and manatee sounds — making this literally one of the coolest new activities to enjoy in the Florida Keys. In addition to its marine life elements, the Sprayground embodies Dolphin Research Center's commitment to environmental conservation. DRC has installed a complete rainwater reclamation system throughout the facility and uses solar-powered pumps for filtering and recirculation. The filtered water helps to power the Sprayground's water features and is also used to irrigate landscaping.
Founded in 1984, Dolphin Research Center is home to a family of Atlantic bottlenose dolphins and California sea lions. Located at 58901 (mile marker 59) Overseas Highway, Grassy Key, Florida, the center is open daily for the public to see narrated behavior sessions and educational presentations, and to participate in interactive programs with the dolphins. The nonprofit organization is funded by admission and program fees as well as by private donors and members. In addition to being one of the most highly respected education and research facilities in the world, DRC is the Licensed Manatee Rescue Team for the Florida Keys and is an accredited member of the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums.
###
