The Dark Side of Trendy Animal Photos

Selfies, GIFs, and viral videos can be deadly for wildlife. Just last week, an endangered baby dolphin died after beachgoers in Argentina hauled it out of the water to pose with it for photos. Also this month two peacocks in a Chinese zoo died after being mishandled by visitors taking selfies.  The International Union for Conservation of Nature, which sets species’ conservation status, lists the La Plata dolphin as vulnerable to extinction, protecting it from hunting and capture in Argentina—but not from people passing one of them around until it died from dehydration.

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Bottlenose Dolphin Adopts Baby Orphan of a Different Species

Dolphin watchers discovered a rare occurrence recently off the New Zealand coast: A bottlenose dolphin adopted an abandoned common dolphin pup.  According to The New Zealand Herald, Kiwi made headlines five years ago when she lost her own baby, named Squirt, after getting stranded in a muddy inlet. Rescuers were able to return the mother to the ocean, but Squirt, which was nowhere to be found, was believed to have been eaten by an orca during the separation.

http://tinyurl.com/k47khcq

Meet the World’s Newest Dolphin Species

Welcome the newest addition to the Flipper family, the Australian humpback dolphin.  The Australian humpback dolphin has been around for millennia. We just didn’t know it, as the species was lumped in with other humpback dolphins that roam the world’s oceans. But in a new study, scientists say they’ve solved a 300-year-old taxonomic riddle, declaring that the Down Under dolphin is a separate species from its African and Asian relatives.

http://tinyurl.com/puembu6

Ultimate Fighter Rescues a Baby Dolphin

While you were sleeping in on Sunday morning, Ultimate Fighter 19 competitor Cathal Pendred was out for a walk on the beach with his girlfriend when he spotted a group of people looking into the ocean at a distressing situation.  As it turns out the crowd was gathered because a baby dolphin had washed up on shore, injured and frightened, unable to get back into the ocean without the currents pushing him onto the beach.  Pendred decided to offer a hand along with another onlooker to help the baby dolphin get back into the water safely.  "I was at a wedding down the countryside on the west coast of Ireland on Saturday. The next day, myself and my girlfriend went for a walk on the beach which was tight beside the hotel we were staying in," Pendred told FOX Sports.

http://tinyurl.com/ksw6l6h

-Igor Purlantov

Video: Baby Dolphin: It's A Boy!

Baby Dolphin at Chicago's Shedd Aquarium a Boy: The Pacific white-sided dolphin mother Piquet (pee-KEHT) probably knew already, but veterinarians at the Chicago's Shedd Aquarium announced yesterday that her calf, born two weeks ago, is male. The pair made their debut swim for the paparazzi, but will remain off exhibit to the public for a few more weeks. The calf is nursing and has put on an extra five pounds since he was born on May 28; he now weighs about 30 lbs. 

http://tinyurl.com/c2s4kby

Dolphin Spends Third Day In California Wetlands

A wayward dolphin is spending a third straight day in a narrow wetlands channel along the Southern California coast, under the watchful eyes of wildlife experts. Peter Wallerstein of Marine Animal Rescue said Sunday that the 6-foot-long, black-and-white common dolphin looks healthy, but appears slightly disoriented.

http://tinyurl.com/82d2y57y

World's Smallest Dolphin Down To Just 55 Individuals

The planet's smallest dolphin, which typically measures just a meter and a half in length, is now on the verge of extinction, with only 55 mature individuals alive in the world, according to a new survey on their population. The child-sized Maui's dolphin, also endearingly called the "popoto", is a subspecies of the Hector's dolphin and can only be found along the west coast of New Zealand's North Island.

http://tinyurl.com/7pp47jj

Video: Incredible Dolphin Superpod 'Stampede' Caught On Video

Whale watchers in Dana Point, California caught this incredible dolphin superpod on footage earlier this week, where an estimated 2,000 dolphins convened and 'stampeded' together across the ocean for this spectacular event!

http://tinyurl.com/6v5t2af