Drone footage shows dolphin mum carrying her dead calf for days
Conservations have filmed a female dolphin carrying her dead calf through the waters of the Indian Ocean for nearly a week.
The heartbreaking drone footage shows the mum (known as Fraggle) swimming whilst trying to keep her calf afloat, and accompanied by other pod mates.
Like us, whales and dolphins are intelligent beings capable of experiencing pleasure and suffering pain. And like us they have culture and societies all of their own. They exhibit a wide range of fascinating behaviours, from hunting, spy-hoping and tail slapping, to surfing waves and using tools. But there are also well substantiated reports of whales and dolphins grieving for their dead. Previous scientific analyses of 78 instances of whale and dolphin behaviour directed toward their dead (observed between 1970 and 2016), noted that instances recorded in females and directed towards dead calves (75%) may have been rescue attempts or grieving.
Science shows us that the rights of whales and dolphins should be recognised. Understanding and appreciating their social complexity is essential to ensure that whale and dolphin populations not only survive, but thrive.
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