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Harassing Dolphins

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21 August

A piece on the Radio Cornwall website today reporting dolphins apparently being harassed by a boat recently in Sennen Bay - and involving the presence of the Police. radio cornwall article
Anyone who has spent any time around dolphins in a boat will tell you that they will chose exactly where they wish to go - they happily outmanoeuvre any boat and will seek to come and play around boats - the faster the boat is going the happier the dolphins seem to be.
Notwithstanding the Marine Creatures Code of Conduct, it is difficult to see how any vessel could harass dolphins.... and indeed the requirement that a boat must stay 100m from them is often impossible to achieve.

Basking Sharks are slightly different and are vulnerable to harassment by boats if they get too close - but recent accusations and images in the papers have been way over the top ...

 

Comments

Chris & Sue 19 September Interesting follow up to this thread.


http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cornwall/7003148.stm


Will the Penlee crew be charged with harrasment now?
Les & Sue 31 August
In response to Vince, at no time in my post did I ever suggest that Dolphins should not be a protected species, in fact I think that anyone who deliberately harrasses sharks and dolphins should be prosecuted.
 
My post was referring to the the facts that were missing from the story, after all why spoil a good story by giving all the facts, I notice that you have stated that it was a RIB, which at no time was this mentioned in the story.
 
My point was that three of the most important were left out, whether the person who contacted the police was local and whether it was a local fisherman, who I believe would know 1. how to behave around dolphins and 2. certainly not harrass them. After all whenever any of us go to the cove I am sure we keep an eye out for dolphins.
 
There have been stories, on local news websites, were dolphin's and basking sharks have been harrassed by boats, I would like to think that these are isolated cases and certainly not people that run the wildlife cruises, and also that these offenders should be given the maximum penalty.
 
Also missing from story was what the outcome of the Police interview, if there were no charges brought then there does not appear to be a case to answer.
 
Once again I don't condone the harrassment of dolphins, or anything else in the sea for that matter, but there are two sides to every story and it would have been a better balanced report if they had included all the facts from both sides.
 
Graham 28 Aug Whatever b****y next.

There is as much chance of a PWC (powered water craft) harassing a 
dolphin as of kids chasing around a yard harassing swallows.

These animals can react in faster and quicker three dimensions than a 
any PWC, speed depth and agility.

This will be a complaint by one of these touchy feely save the 
Planets that know slightly less than bugger all about the sea and its 
inhabitants.

However i will totally agree that harassing baskers and sunfish and 
turtles (yes they are out there too) is a real no no,

However even then I have learn't  that if they don`t want you around 
they can move pretty quickly ( or agressively) and its usually down, 
but dolphins.....GET REAL.......

Vince 26 Aug Contgratulations  to the person that contacted the police regarding the harrassment of dolphins by a RIB
The law (Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981) states that it is an offence to intentionally or recklessly harass any dolphin, porpoise, whale or basking shark.  The penalties for such an offence include a fine of up to £5,000 or imprisonment for up to 6 months.
What a shame that the other posters on this subject don't think that dolphins should be protected,

Les & Sue

21 Aug

I noticed this story at lunchtime and I suppose it comes down to
bureaucracy and red tape and jobsworth.

On reading the story it only states that a boat owner was spoken to
after being reported by a member of the public.
It's what it doesn't tell you that is important, was this member of
the public someone local? Was the boat owner a local fisherman, these I
think are the two essential pieces of the story.

After all if it was a local fisherman then surely he he knows how to act
round dolphins, firstly because he is used to them anyway and secondly
why would he want to scare away one of the reasons that people like to
come to the cove for. After all I don't know about you guys, but I think
there is something magical in seeing dolphins in the wild.

Living near Windsor, we used to go to Windsor Safari Park, before it
became Legoland, every week just to see the dolphins and the killer
whale.

But I suppose if the Police have had a complaitn then they have to act
on it, and I suppose if there was anything serious then they would have
down more than just talk to the person involved.

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