
DATE: Sunday, April 13, 1997                TAG: 9704110276

SECTION: CAROLINA COAST          PAGE: 06   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: COVER STORY 

SOURCE: BY LANE DEGREGORY, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:  158 lines

DYNAMIC DOLPHINS INTELLIGENT, TALKATIVE AND PERPETUALLY PLAYFUL, THEY ARE AMONG THE OCEAN'S MOST COMMUNICATIVE ANIMALS.

OFF THE SOUTHERN tip of Brazil, dolphins help watermen herd fish into nets, then share the catch with their human colleagues.

In Sea World of San Diego, Calif., these elegant marine mammals jump into high arcs, swim upside down and clap their flippers on command.

Along North Carolina's Outer Banks, bands of bottlenose dolphins follow shrimp boats, leap near ferries and perform for people around the islands' inlets and sounds. They delight beach dwellers year round with their near-shore, above-water antics. And sometimes they let humans swim with them for a few mystical minutes.

Intelligent, talkative and perpetually playful, bottlenose dolphins are among the earth's most beloved sea creatures. They inhabit almost every ocean in the world, as well as many wide rivers. They've starred in dozens of movies and the ``Flipper'' television series, aided the U.S. Navy with military activities and been regarded by some cultures as messengers of the gods.

Thousands of them frolic between the seashore and the Gulf Stream along North Carolina's barrier islands. ``You don't usually see fish. And you rarely see whales. But dolphins are one underwater animal you get to see above the sea,'' said Frank Hudgins, the husbandry curator at North Carolina's Aquarium on Roanoke Island. ``They ride the wakes of boats, love to surf waves and are the most common marine mammal found in zoos, aquariums and Sea World-type shows. They seem to like humans and aren't very shy.

``But as much as we've studied them, we still have a lot to learn.''

Stuart Wescott has been running dolphin tours out of Manteo for two years. After logging more than 100 inshore excursions and carrying 2,300 passengers between Manns Harbor and Oregon Inlet, he estimates he's seen dolphins on at least 97 percent of the trips. Some days, more than 200 of the olive-colored torpedoes dive around his 45-foot pontoon boat - making a big splash with the tourists.

``We've seen them mating, birthing and doing all activities in between,'' Wescott said last week from his Roanoke Island residence. ``They come up and splash the people on the boat and ride the waves in our wake. Some days, the dolphins put on a show - jumping out of the water, doing flips and twisting in the air.

``The more people on board whoop and holler, the more the dolphins perform. Most of these folks have never seen a dolphin before - much less one making eye contact, laughing at them from arm's length. It's like a fantasy turned into reality.''

Wescott provides dolphin tours from late April through early October. July through September is generally the best time to see the near-shore shows, he said. The

two-hour cruise departs three times daily.

``We've found them behind Jockey's Ridge, in the deepest part of Oregon Inlet's channel and up in Shallowbag Bay by the `Elizabeth II,' '' Wescott said. ``They get all the way up to Elizabeth City and the Edenton area on occasion. When you cut off the boat's motor, you can usually hear them coming around and blowing air, talking and singing to each other - and us.''

Relics of prehistoric creatures resembling dolphins are 30 million years old. Today, more than 40 species of dolphins swim throughout the world's waters. Bottlenose dolphins, who stay closest to shore and are among the most widespread species, also are the best known and most often seen off the Outer Banks. Their backs are generally black or dark grey. Their underbellies can fade to lighter grey and even pinkish.

Like other marine mammals, dolphins are warm blooded, breathe air, have teeth and give birth to live young that drink milk. And although they are eaten in Japan and South America, they are federally protected in the United States - and not to be confused with dolphin fish, ``Mahi-mahi,'' that is served in many Outer Banks restaurants.

Bottlenose dolphins have fatty dorsal fins that act like keels on a sailboat, stabilizing the animals as they glide gracefully through the sea. They can swim more than 25 miles per hour. Scientists tracked one group of dolphins from San Diego to Monterey Bay in California. The animals swam more than 400 miles following fish. Then some returned, making the long trip back to more familiarity territory.

``We've been studying migratory patterns of bottlenose dolphins along the East Coast, and we know the same groups move between Virginia Beach and Beaufort,'' said Vicky Thayer, a biologist with the National Marine Fisheries Service who works in Beaufort, N.C. ``They seem to be farther south in the winter and nearer to Virginia Beach in the summer. I don't know if they like having all those crowds of people around to perform for or what.''

Bottlenose dolphins grow 10 to 12 feet long and weigh upward of 550 pounds. Females live more than 50 years, while males' lifespans average 25. Females bear calves every two to five years, and the offspring swim alongside mom for the first four years, then join other adolescents who appear to be more fun.

Although dozens of dead dolphins wash up along the coast of Virginia and North Carolina each year, their populations are not dropping or in danger. Dolphins are, however, protected by the government. And only scientists with federal permits are allowed to touch them.

Very vocal, both with other bottlenose dolphins and human observers, these skilled communicators each have their own ``signature whistle'' - an individual name their mother gives them at birth - different in tone, form or duration from any other dolphin's whistle. They have excellent eyesight. But they also navigate by making brief, loud clicking noises in the airways of their heads. These sounds echo off their surroundings. And they help dolphins find destinations, other dolphins and food.

``Bottlenose dolphins eat shrimp, eels, catfish, mullet - you name it. They have more than 70 species of prey,'' Hudgins said. They eat 3 to 6 percent of their body weight daily. And they like to throw flounder and other fish into the air, smacking them on the sea's surface to stun their supper.

``Dolphins can fight and throw temper tantrums. They each have their own personality,'' Sea World Educator Ely Ramos said. ``They learn very quickly and are fairly simple to train with hand signals.''

Most scuba divers consider it a privilege - and a thrill - for dolphins to circle them or include them briefly in their band. Colington Island Dive Boat Capt. Roger Huffman said he had been waiting all his life for a dolphin encounter. Finally, in 1990 - after running off-shore trips along the Outer Banks for five years - he went face-to-face with eight friendly dolphins who sought him out as he hung under water beside his boat.

``I was about 15 feet beneath the surface, coming up from a dive off the World War II tanker wreck `Australia' near Diamond Shoals,'' Huffman said last week. ``I was just flapping in the current, hanging onto the anchor line, when I heard some squeaks and the dolphins came up alongside me. They were so close, they were almost pushing me around with their snouts. They must have circled me, playing, for six or eight minutes. I made eye contact with two that seemed especially friendly.''

At that time in his life, Huffman said, he was into New Age studies. Floating with the dolphins was an entirely spiritual experience. And the animals seemed to understand him. As they swam away, Huffman said, he opened his arms and asked them to come back. Two of the dolphins made U-turns and swam back to play some more.

``They're entirely different from fish - and certainly special among marine mammals,'' Huffman said. ``Dolphins like to control the situation. They're curious and cautious at the same time. And they have a great sense of humor.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photos including color cover by DREW C. WILSON/The

Virginian-Pilot

A young dolphin breaks the watter off the Outer Banks last week.

A pod of bottlenose dolphins stay close as they work the Atlantic

just outside the breakers along Nags Head. There are more than 40

species of dolphins throughout the world's waters.

The dorsal fins of three dolphins show sidely differing markings.

Bottlenose dolphins, who stay closest to shore and are among the

most widespread species, also are the best known and most often seen

off the Outer Banks.

A dolphin rides the bow wave of a humpback whale off Kill Devil

Hills. Dolphins are federally protected in the United States - and

not to be confused with dolphin fish, ``Mahi-mahi,'' that is served