Finned Friends
Belly flops and body slams have been the order of the day in Seven Seas Dolphinarium lately. This is a sign that everything is going swimmingly for the two groups of Atlantic bottlenose dolphins who now call it home. Amongst the din of sparring siblings and budding friendships, trainers have been working with a couple of very welcomed new additions.
DJ is for De Janeiro!
Minnesota is not the first place that you would think to look for dolphins---particularly one with a South American name like De Janeiro, DJ for short. But Brookfield Zoo’s newest dolphin resident made his way from the land of ten thousand lakes in November of 2004. The journey to Chicago marked the first time DJ had set fins outside of Minnesota Zoo’s Discovery Bay exhibit but he seemed to be a little dolphin who was ready for a change.
"(DJ)'s a little bit of a social misfit in that group," said Diane Fusco, who supervises the marine mammal program at Minnesota Zoo before the big move. "He's kind of in that betwixt-and-between age. He just does not have anyone to hang out with. The females are together, and the two older males tolerate him at most. He needs to learn how to be a big boy."
Brookfield Zoo and Minnesota Zoo staff both knew exactly what DJ needed---a buddy.
Kai Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphin is a Seven Seas resident who seemed like he would fit the bill perfectly. Both dolphins are the same age and have shared many of the same experiences. Both young dolphins have gone through “odd man out” experiences because they did not have similarly aged animals with which to bond. In the wild, young male dolphins of their age usually leave their mother’s group in search of other dolphins. They join “bachelor groups” where young males tend to create very strong social bonds that may last their entire lives. Bonded males cooperate in hunting and gaining access to females. Both zoos hoped that DJ and Kai would create that natural bond.
Brookfield Zoo and Minnesota Zoo are part of a consortium of institutions that manage their dolphins as a larger population. The group attempts to mimic the movement of wild dolphins within other social groups by sometimes moving the animals between zoos. The work of Brookfield Zoo researcher Dr. Randy Wells in Florida has been important in understanding dolphin social behavior and groupings. He has overseen the world’s longest continuous study of wild dolphins by observing many generations of the animals for over 30 years in Sarasota Bay. His research has revealed tons of data about the social lives of wild dolphin populations. Wells’s observations on when and why dolphins move between groups in the wild have helped to inform how the dolphin consortium organizes the animals in its groups. His observations of bachelor groups made both zoos confident that Kai and DJ could be compatible.
Trainers from both zoos monitored DJ before and after the move to Chicago to make sure he made the transition as easily as possible. So far, everything is working well for both Kai and DJ. Greg Dye, Assistant Curator of Marine Mammals at Brookfield Zoo likens their relationship to “a pair of computer geeks finding each other at sports camp,” as the pair seems to be reveling in their newfound companionship. DJ is learning fast and the trainers are seeing big improvement in a very short time. Already, he has gotten used to a new training system, adapted to the differently-shaped pools, and learned to move between gated pools (which he had never seen before) without any problems. But zoo guests are likely to notice improvement through his contribution to the daily dolphin presentations. DJ came to the zoo with some great show behaviors in his repertoire. Most notably, he does a very “splashy” belly flop and a leaping ball toss behavior that has to be seen to be believed!
In the wild Kai and DJ would have no access to female dolphins, so they are managed the same at Brookfield Zoo. But they will interact with other males. DJ has shown a lot of interest in Lucky and Hastings, a pair of mature males who came back to Brookfield Zoo in 2002. Eventually, the time that DJ and Kai spend hanging out with Lucky and Hastings will teach the younger dolphins how to behave in proper dolphin society. Kai has already learned a lot from the big guys about how to interact with other dolphins and trainers expect DJ to pick up many of the same lessons. Dye refers to this as important lessons in “dolphin etiquette.” Since Kai and DJ are separated from the females, they will continue to be managed separately; but Lucky and Hastings will bounce between the two groups so that they can fulfill their professorial duties.
“This is whole thing is like going off to school for the first time,” said Greg Dye. “It’s a frightening adventure for DJ, but he is doing great and learning fast. The new experiences and new social group have helped him make the transition.”
DJ Dolphin
Kai Dolphin
Kai and DJ together in Seven Seas
One Big Happy Family
The other dolphin group consists of females Tapeko and Kaylee, Lucky and Hastings, young male Micco, and baby Noelani who was born in November of 2003. Trainers refer to this as the maternal group because Kaylee is Micco’s mother and Tapeko gave birth to Noelani. At times, the ruckus from this group seems a lot like a rowdy day care center as Micco and Noelani continue to mature.
Noelani is growing quickly and becoming very independent. She spends most of her time playing with Micco. But life is not all play, she is also learning a lot from her trainers. Already, she can perform a number of behaviors that are essential to her health like sliding onto a scale, presenting her fins to the trainers for blood draws, allowing ultrasounds, touching targets, and she does some great air spins in the daily shows.
When she is not training, keepers have noticed that Noelani will chase anything that makes its way into the pool. This gave them quite a scare recently when the trainers were helping out with a very special wedding proposal in Seven Seas. Noelani got a hold of the waterproof container containing a $10,000 engagement ring and tossed all over the pool as trainers watched and held their breath. But much more time is spent with her nephew Micco. The two young dolphins are the centers of each other’s world. They chase each other around the pools constantly. Recently, when Noelani was learning to move between the front and back pools she was separated from Micco for a short period of time. As soon as she caught sight of him she immediately swam in his direction and delivered a giant body slam against the pool wall which is a typical play behavior. “She’s his buddy,” says Dye with a big smile on his face. If the play gets too rough Tapeko becomes ‘base’ for Noelani: but more often Tapeko breaks up play time because the racket seems to drive the other dolphins crazy.
For Lucky and Hastings things are a bit more mellow. These mature males are closing in on their retirement at ages 30 and 31. They are very experienced and trainers tend to focus on proactive medical surveillance with them. They are incredibly valuable both genetically and socially as they teach the younger boys. They will be spending more and more time with Micco, DJ, and Kai, as they all eventually move out of the maternal group.
Wild Encounters
There are a few more changes in the works for all of the dolphins. Brookfield Zoo recently announced some very exciting new programs called “Wild Encounters.” Two of the programs include “once in a lifetime” opportunities for guests to interact with the dolphins in Seven Seas. This is a huge change for the dolphins who seem to enjoy the interactions as much as the humans who take part. It marks an easier training regimen for part of the day, and being curious animals, are stimulated by the parade of new faces to play with. Seven Seas was built to be safe for both the public and dolphins by creating an open space between the two groups. This program tears that barrier down, much to the enjoyment of all. It marks a shift in the way that Brookfield Zoo staff, guests, and animals interact, and is a sign of things to come in the future. But for now, it seems like a lot of fun for the dolphins…
Micco Dolphin
Noelani Dolphin
Kai Dolphin
DJ Dolphin