Dolphin Exploring

Marco Island’s population – on land – easily doubles during the winter season. Under the surface of the surrounding waters, though, the local population of bottlenose dolphins is year-round, with over a hundred in distinct groups, living, feeding – and breeding.  

The breeding and other activities of dolphins, and the new babies born, were the subject of a talk Tuesday evening, February 4, by naturalist Bob McConville at the Rose History Auditorium. As well as being a Florida Master Naturalist, McConville is a nature photographer, the author of books on Southwest Florida’s ecology, and part owner and tour operator aboard the “Dolphin Explorer,” offering boat excursions that get visitors up close to marine mammals and even let them participate in research. McConville was joined by James Livaccari III, the marine biologist who works with him on the Dolphin Explorer and concentrated his portion of the report on the habits of the males of the species.  

Unlike many dolphins who roam the open seas and cover large swaths of water, Marco Island’s dolphins stay in local waters year after year, giving the crew of the Dolphin Explorer the chance to follow individuals and families over years and generations. Next year will mark 20 years of the local dolphin study carried out by McConville and his associates.  

Calves being born this year are the grandchildren of female dolphins still active in local waters, with 11 documented grandma dolphins and the first great-grand-dolphin expected in late summer, with a full year of gestation following the mating period from August through October. The calves nurse for up to two years, and stay very close to their mothers, so that relationship is easy to establish, but ascertaining the male parent is problematic.  

“There are no wedding rings among dolphins,” said McConville. The females will mate with several males during a given season. Unlike many species, dolphins do not pair off in long-term couples relationships, but generally, two males will establish a “male pair bond,” which enables them to fend off other suitors for the favors of females they are pursuing.  

Dolphin mothers are protective toward their calves, who sometimes fall victim to predation by hammerhead or bull sharks. McConville and Livaccari illustrated their talk with striking photos from their boat cruises, including a dolphin who had survived an encounter with a bull shark and had the scars to prove it. Other photos showed the marks of boat propellers, another hazard in local waters. The unique markings on a dolphin’s dorsal fin provide a way for the naturalists to identify individuals, greatly aiding in their study. 

On balance, the waters surrounding Marco provide a safe and attractive environment for the dolphins, with average depths of eight to 10 feet, shallow water to escape into, and plentiful fish – the local dolphins eat a ton of fish per day. While overall, in the open ocean, the survival rate for dolphin calves is 30 percent, in this area, the rate is over 80 percent, with 51 calves of 63 documented births surviving. First-time dolphin mothers have a harder time keeping their calves alive.  

The work of the Dolphin Explorer, McConville said, marks the first independent dolphin study in the US, and is funded entirely by the ticket sales for dolphin-watching cruises. They do scientifically valuable research but still have to put up with “some attitude” from nonprofit research organizations, he said.  

“National Geographic has been out on our boat twice, and we’ve had journalists from as far as the Times of London,” he said. McConville and Coastal Breeze News also earned a couple of awards from both the Florida Press Association (FPA) and the Association of Community Papers (ACT) for his “Stepping Stones” columns. The Dolphin Explorer works with researchers from NOAA and as far away as Queensland College in Australia, as well as the Freedom Waters Foundation and the Ambassadors of the Environment from Marco Island Academy. They also give tours to at-risk youths in the community in conjunction with the Collier County Sheriff’s Office. “Some of those kids from Immokalee had never seen a boat before,” said McConville.  

The team led 449 excursions last year, documenting more than 6,300 sightings of the 130 local dolphins that call this area home. The Dolphin Explorer tour, with over 1,700 five-star ratings from Trip Advisor, departs daily morning and afternoon from Rose Marina. For more information, call 239-642-6899 or go online to www.dolphin-study.com.