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Dolphin mom adopts whale calf—a first
National Grographic ^ | July 30, 2019 | Erica Tennehouse

Posted on 08/01/2019 7:11:16 AM PDT by C19fan

Bottlenose dolphins are doting mothers, nursing, protecting, and playing with their youngsters for up to six years.

Now, new research has revealed the first known case of a wild bottlenose mom adopting a calf of another species.

In 2014, researchers spotted a bottlenose mother caring for an unusual-looking male calf, along with what was presumed to be her biological calf, in coastal waters off French Polynesia.

(Excerpt) Read more at nationalgeographic.com ...


TOPICS: Pets/Animals
KEYWORDS: dolphins; melonheadedwhale; whales
Cute....Thankfully the adopted whale only grows to around 10 feet so mommy Dolphin is not in for a shock when junior grows up.
1 posted on 08/01/2019 7:11:16 AM PDT by C19fan
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To: C19fan

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melon-headed_whale


2 posted on 08/01/2019 7:16:16 AM PDT by Jeff Chandler (This Space For Rant)
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To: Jeff Chandler

By Chris huh, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link


3 posted on 08/01/2019 7:18:15 AM PDT by Jeff Chandler (This Space For Rant)
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To: C19fan

Love it.


4 posted on 08/01/2019 7:19:16 AM PDT by trisham (Zen is not easy. It takes effort to attain nothingness. And then what do you have? Bupkis.)
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To: C19fan

It would be fun to be a dolphin for a week. Especially in French Polynesia.


5 posted on 08/01/2019 7:33:11 AM PDT by Track9
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To: C19fan

researchers spotted a bottlenose mother caring for an unusual-looking male calf...

~~~

I think she got knocked up by the whale.
I wonder if he gets visitation.


6 posted on 08/01/2019 7:40:42 AM PDT by z3n
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To: C19fan

Makes you wonder how it Will fare as an adult if the dolphins reject it when it matures (or if it leaves in search of a bride) if it hasn’t been raised among its own and hasn’t learned melon-head social behavior.


7 posted on 08/01/2019 7:44:06 AM PDT by Paal Gulli
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To: C19fan

Did the Japanese Kill it for “research” purposes yet?


8 posted on 08/01/2019 7:45:37 AM PDT by Kickass Conservative (Socialism is a gateway Ideology.)
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To: Paal Gulli

Melon-headed whales live in pods so the adopted one would have been in trouble if the dolphin pod rejected it.


9 posted on 08/01/2019 7:47:37 AM PDT by C19fan
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To: Track9

Yeah, doing aquatic research in French Polynesia....that’s tragic isn’t it?


10 posted on 08/01/2019 7:50:13 AM PDT by V_TWIN
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To: V_TWIN

You got to keep up with the globull warming hysteria else you won’t get your grant money for another year in the sun.


11 posted on 08/01/2019 7:55:39 AM PDT by Track9
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To: C19fan
Saw a video on You Tube of a deformed dolphin that was adopted by a pod of Sperm whales. Mammals thankfully are possessed of social and nurturing instincts that have help we mammals to adapt and survive.
12 posted on 08/01/2019 8:04:14 AM PDT by jmacusa ("If wisdom is not the Lord, what is wisdom?''.)
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To: C19fan

I’ve stopped clicking on NatGeo due to their constant AGW/climate change nonsense.


13 posted on 08/01/2019 8:22:08 AM PDT by JimRed ( TERM LIMITS, NOW! Build the Wall Faster! TRUTH is the new HATE SPEECH.)
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To: C19fan

I was going to ask where she was going to get enough milk


14 posted on 08/01/2019 8:57:49 AM PDT by piasa (Attitude adjustments offered here free of charge.)
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To: C19fan
LOL Ain't that the truth. Everyone in my family has poker-straight hair, except for me. My father used to say I wasn't his, I belonged to the milkman. 😆
15 posted on 08/01/2019 10:11:17 AM PDT by Viking2002
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To: C19fan

How do they know it’s a first? It could have happened many times out in the open ocean.


16 posted on 08/01/2019 10:20:20 AM PDT by raybbr (The left is a poison on society. There is no antidote. Running its course will be painful. You)
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