2024 Annual Dolphin Report

Another fiscal year is in the books and the research team on board the Dolphin Explorer has documented more new information than they anticipated in January 2024. The team led 449 excursions during the last year, documenting more than 6,300 sightings of the 130 local dolphins that call this area home. 

There were nine new dolphin calves born in 2024, which set a few records for our moms. Female Darwina gave birth to DJ, her seventh documented birth since 2006. This ties her with mom Halfway for the most documented babies in our society. Also, females KayCee and Manhattan gave birth, the first mother and daughter to have calves in the same year since our study began. All nine babies have survived the early months of life, the first time in more than seven years that all of the youngsters have managed this feat. 

Since 2018, there have been 62 calves born with 50 surviving. The team has discovered a pattern that first-time moms have more difficulty keeping their newborns alive, more so than experienced moms. There is an obvious curve upward for moms who have several calves. However, the trend changes within the older female population. Once again, those females have difficulty prolonging the longevity of their calf's lives. It could be that the older females do not produce as much milk as when they were young, thus the survival rate of young in our dolphin society tends to be experienced moms in the middle years of life. 

Our male society is experiencing some change. There are 15 adult males and 39 adult females in our society and of those 15, six are the most dominant males in the society. These six are actually three pairs of two each, and they rule the mating in our area. These three Male Pair Bonds have been in control for 15 to 20 years, if not longer (there were no other dolphin study programs prior to ours). 

Several younger adult males are now pairing and are getting big enough and strong enough to battle for those top spots. In addition, one of our most dominant males named Hatchet has not been seen for several months. His paired bond male companion is Capri, and he is much older than Hatchet. It could be that Hatchet has formed a better alliance with another male outside of our survey area. 

We now have more than 10 dolphins that have survived shark attacks and at least four that have survived injuries due to boat strikes. Young dolphins, from birth to about three to four years old would be prime for shark attacks. Boat strikes could occur to a dolphin of any age. In addition to these dangers, our team has been involved in three lifesaving rescues regarding fishing line tangled around the dolphins’ tails. 

Overall, our population is growing, not declining by any means. This is a great sign that our ecosystem is relatively healthy. Dolphins are an “Indicator Species,” which means if they are around, everything else in the ecosystem is likely doing well. Dolphins don’t eat dead fish. If their food supply dwindles for any reason, they would move where there is plenty to eat. So, if the grass beds are healthy, the shrimp and fish are able to feed, and the dolphins will stay right here at home, right where they have been living for hundreds if not thousands of years! 

You can read our full End of Year report on our website dolphin-study.com in a few weeks. The team will begin its 20th year of survey work in the Marco Island area on February 6th. The more time and data that we collect, the more unique information we can deliver to all of you and to our contacts around the world! 

Stay tuned! 

To all of our loyal dol-fans, and potential dol-fans, our team wishes ALL OF YOU the very best 2025 in health and happiness! May God bless!