Like humans, dolphins will suffocate if they do not surface for air within a certain period. When a calf dies and sinks underwater, the mother tries to save it by repeatedly pushing it to the surface, Oh explained.
“When it becomes clear that the baby isn’t moving, the mother starts to accept its death,” he added sombrely.
“Even as the body starts to decompose, the mother continues to carry it, indicating her refusal to let go of the baby … This behavior is very similar to what humans do when mourning.”
Current laws that require tourist boats to stay at least 50m away from dolphins are insufficient, said the team’s leader Kim Byung-yeob, an ocean science professor at Jeju National University.
He suggested boats keep about 800m away instead, while other observers went so far as to say tours should be stopped altogether.
Jo Yak-gol, who co-founded Jeju animal advocacy group Hot Pink Dolphins, pointed out that operators compete with one another to sail as close as they can to the dolphins.
“Whenever these tour boats or fishing boats get near the dolphins, they just stop hunting and then they have to move away or go the opposite direction from the boats, so they (don’t) have enough time to feed the babies,” he added.
