Dolphins – So Like Us

You don’t have to see too many “bucket” lists to know that humans have a unique connection to dolphins. The mysterious and ancient civilization of the Minoans left murals depicting their reverence for them. Dolphins make frequent appearances in Greek mythology from associations with gods and goddesses, rescuing poets or heroes, and even falling under the observations of many scholars such as Aristotle and Plutarch.

The Sun God Apollo described the dolphin as the embodiment of peaceful virtue, undisguised joy, and as a guide to another world. He sometimes exchanged his god-like status to assume dolphin form. Apollo even named the Oracle at Delphi (dolphin-town) in the dolphin’s honor. Delphinus was one of 48 constellations listed by the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy, and remains among the 88  constellations recognized by the International Astronomical Union (it looks NOTHING like a dolphin though). They are even said to have announced the arrival of the Hindu Goddess Ganga, for which the River Ganges is named.The examples continue for awhile, but why is it that from recorded history we share such an affinity for dolphins? Is it their playfulness… their high intelligence… or something else?

Dolphins have fairly big brains, with a somewhat impressive brain to body mass ratio. They have a very developed cerebral cortex and all that goes with it (like grey matter for more neural connections, large frontal lobe for decision making, large amygdala for emotions and memory, etc.). Each of the two lobes of their brain can essentially operate independently, having separate blood supplies and even sleeping at different times. The neurophysiology is outstanding and could merit its own separate discussion.

The size and structure of a brain doesn’t necessarily imply intelligence and can mean other things as well. Things such as empathy and altruism.

Scientists have long sought explanations for the capacity of self-sacrifice, seemingly unique to humans. Although, I’m not entirely convinced that altruism is found only in humans. What are we to make of the numerous stories that depict remarkable examples of animals putting their lives on the line for other animal species, including humans?

In evolutionary biology, an organism is said to behave altruistically when its behavior benefits other organisms at a cost to itself and, more specifically, a cost to its gene reproduction. That means if a self-sacrificial act is committed for member of the animals family or another member of the same species, it can’t technically count as altruistic.

Could a story about Surya the orangutan meeting and sharing with a hound count as altruistic? I don’t know the answer to that but I do doubt that it’s merely a sense of equity. Does the dolphin culture which saturates human history contain displays of altruism?

In 2004, a stranded family was confronted by a great white off the coast of New Zealand. A pod of dolphins “herded” them together, circling them until the great white fled. In another case in the Red Sea, twelve divers who were lost for nearly fourteen hours were surrounded by dolphins the entire time, repelling the many sharks that live in the area. When a rescue boat showed up, the dolphins would leap up in the air in front of the rescuers, jumping toward the lost people as if to lead the boat onward.

Once, rescuers were unable to save some Pilot Whales that were stranded on a sandbar.  Upon recognition of the distress, some dolphins risked their lives to calm the mother then lead the whales to safety.

I’m not sure what these animals had to gain in these instances. It is my opinion that it says a lot about their social inclinations and why humans love these particular animals so much, and one of the many reasons we should do our best to protect them.