Dolphins Take a Stroll Along the Seawall
There were various video posts last week of dolphins in Burrard Inlet including right along the West Vancouver Seawall!
Below is a great video by the Marine Mammal Rescue Society about these very welcome marine visitors. It might seem like they are very close to the dolphins.
As referred to in their video, videos like theirs were taken from far back (perhaps e.g. from the shoreline and/or with a telephoto lens) as required by federal law (see here for details),.
For the protection of marine mammals, we must admire and enjoy them from a respectful distance: 100m from dolphins, porpoises and whales, and 200m back if they are resting or with calf and all killer whales., under federal regulations i.e. it’s not just a suggestion.
Some people have never been made aware of how to respectfully interact with animals and when they someone else going right up to them, they will too, and take the opportunity for an Instagram post not realizing the harm to the animals. As exciting and thrilling as it is to see them, we have to stay back the required distance based on marine mammal research.
“Anger follows dolphin’s selfie-fuelled death on Argentine beach“. “Ship strikes are a leading cause of death for whales, with an estimated 20,000 killed by collisions annually. This is particularly concerning for sub-species already facing extinction, [including]] North Atlantic right whales, of which only around 360 remain.” (Ship Technology)
Related Post: “Paddle Boarder Heavily Fined for Entering the 200m Protected Zone” of our Southern Resident Killer Whales now at immanent risk of extinction.
