They call these dolphins “cosmopolitan” for a reason.
Boaters and kayakers are being treated this summer to up-close and personal views of bottlenose dolphins playing in the shadows of the Big Apple skyline — a rare sight experts say could soon become more common.
Last week, a pod of roughly 20 of the mammals — also known as “cosmopolitan” members of the Delphinidae species because they can be found in temperate estuaries throughout the globe — put on a once-in-a-lifetime acrobatic show for thrilled Staten Island Ferry riders as the ship closed in on the island’s Upper Bay shoreline.
“It was amazing! I saw them breaching and just thought, ‘Oh my God!’ ” said Nicole Shaw, a deckhand for the ferry who has worked in Big Apple waters for a decade.
“I ran over and started recording, and it just got better as I went along,” Shaw said. “I’ve never seen bottlenose in here like that.
“It’s definitely not a sight we normally see in New York Harbor.”
While dolphins are not unheard of in New York City waters — like the popular short-beaked pair seen frolicking in the East River last winter — sightings of bottlenoses are considered rare, and they haven’t traversed to the Big Apple in strong numbers until recently, experts said.
Their growing appearances could be due to a combination of cleaner waters and warming temperatures, according to Chris St. Lawrence of Gotham Whale, a south Brooklyn marine research center.
“It’s a twofold thing — it’s showing that our ecosystems are changing, but it’s also showing that these animals are able to find places where they can thrive,” St. Lawrence said. “New York City has gone through amazing changes over the last few decades, where our waters are cleaning up, we’re seeing our big fish returning.
“Those dolphins that we’re seeing on the ocean side, maybe following those bait fish up into the harbor, and that’s what’s able to keep them healthy and happy and sticking around. It’s rare to see them in the harbor, but it’s expected” given the recent changes.
Gotham Whale received verbal reports of bottlenose dolphins sporadically throughout July but then got five reports containing photo evidence in the past two weeks.
One of those sightings was conveyed by Eva Rivlin of the New York City Water Trail Association, who happened upon a lone bottlenose Saturday while kayaking in the Hudson River with friends.
A group of kayakers about a mile north of her’s spotted the mammal first and then texted their fellow nature enthusiasts to keep their eyes peeled for it.
“We were moving slowly, looking for fins, and sure enough, we saw a dorsal fin maybe 200 yards north of us, recalled Rivlin, who spends at least two days per week paddling on the river. “I was lucky enough to catch it a couple of times before it passed us.
“This is my first time actually seeing one in the Hudson,” she said. “I’ve seen them down by Breezy Point before. It’s incredibly special.”
Numerous other reports came from Brooklyn Bridge Park, where two bottlenoses have been making themselves known to kayakers in the harbor.
The sightings are most popular between Governors and Ellis islands.
“I see them regularly in Florida kayaking, but I’m out here every day sailing in the harbor, and this is only the second time in eight years I’ve seen them in the harbor,” said sailboat Capt. Ian Graham, 40, who, with his brother, runs the organization Brooklyn Sail.
“We were just sailing along, and I pointed them out to the group. I saw them ahead,” he said. “There weren’t many other boats around, and we’re pretty quiet because we were sailing. And so they came right up next to the boat, and I took a little video.
“They look like they’re happy and healthy.”
Read the full article here
