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A dolphin attack swimmer in Japan is believably alone and sexually frustrated , experts say .
At least 18 people have been injured in dolphinfish attacks in Fukui prefecture this twelvemonth in what is becoming an annual occurrence in the region . Most of the injuries are minor bites , but some beachgoers have suffered unkept bones since theattacks started in 2022 .
A stock image of an Indo-Pacific dolphin swimming (not the individual responsible for the recent attacks).
researcher think a lonely male person Indo - Pacific bottlenose dolphin ( Tursiops aduncus ) is likely responsible for the attacks establish on photographs and video footage , Naturereported .
" We ’ve project that this dolphinfish randomly register up at a beach , insect bite if there are people around , vagabond off and repeats,“Tadamichi Morisaka , a professor in the Cetacean Research Center at Mie University in Japan , told Nature . " To me , he ’s seeking some kind of interaction with masses . "
Dolphins engage in blue biting with each other as part of their normal social doings , so the dolphin might consider he ’s got a friendly relationship with the mankind , Morisaka say .
" If he really wanted to attack , he could have come tackle at full force and chomped down . But he ’s keep the bite gentle for mahimahi standards , so it ’s probably a favorable gesture rather than a full - on seek to attack , " he said .
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It ’s unclear why the dolphin is on his own . Bottlenose dolphins normally be in pods , with males forminglong - term partnershipswith other males . Paired males bite , pursuit , rub and engage in sexual behaviors such as pressing their penises against one another as part of these relationship , and Morisaka think the dolphin in Fukui is trying to handle homo like a manly pair mate .
Ryoichi Matsubara , the film director of Echizen Matsushima Aquarium in Fukui , toldThe New York Timesthat the mahimahi was observe trying to weigh his genitals against citizenry in 2022 and 2023 , and that he might be act out mating behavior — but also biting beachgoers if they approached or tried to touch him .
Other investigator have also suggested that the attacks could partially be the result of the mahimahi ’s desire to couple . Simon Allen , a principal investigator at the Shark Bay Dolphin Research task in Western Australia , toldBBC Newsthat dolphins can express their sociality in forcible ways .
" Just as in humans and other societal animals , hormonal variation , sexual defeat or the desire to dominate might push back the dolphin to wound the people it interacts with , " Allen said . " Since they are such powerful fauna , this can lead to serious injury in man . "
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However , Morisaka is occupy the mahimahi could get used to the acoustic gadget and instead wants to develop an echo sounding signal detection system to alarm beachgoers that a mahimahi is nearby . He believes that with people out of the water , the mahimahi wo n’t find anything interesting at the beaches and will eventually provide them alone .
If the human - dolphin interactions continue , they could become more dangerous . Morisaka said dolphins can set about attempting to assert their dominance over humans , engaging in aggressive behaviors such as undertake or mounting .
" We saw a routine of this last summertime , so I was very interested , " Morisaka sound out . " They are about 2.5 metres [ 8.2 feet ] long and consider around 200 kilo [ 440 hammer ] , so if they came charging at 20 - 30 kilometres per hour [ 12 to 19 mph ] , it ’d be like have into a dealings accident . "
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