By Bob McNeil
Moko the dolphin is recovering well after being injured when a woman allegedly hit him with an oar last week.
He suffered grazes to his dorsal fin, but today joined swimmers at Whakatane.
This morning the dolphin has made his way up the Whakatane River, bringing with him his whole bag of tricks – like swimming with a boogie board on his head.
Some people have accused Moko of being dangerous and too aggressive. But dolphin expert, Professor Mark Orams, disagrees.
“I would characterise Moko’s play as being assertive rather than aggressive,” he says.
“It’s assertive because that’s what young, bottlenose dolphins do. They’re testing their strength, they’re finding their way in the world. A little bit like a teenage male in our species – they’re just trying to feel their way in terms of how much power they have.”
Today Moko showed just how strong, and gentle, he can be.
“He’s just silky smooth and so friendly,” says swimmer Natalie Wilson. “A gentle, gentle creature, that could hurt you if he wanted to, and he just didn’t even come close.”
The scars from the beating he allegedly received from the oar of a female waka paddler were still visible today, but Moko was having too much fun to notice.
Mr Orams says the attack on Moko is unlikely to change his friendly attitude, or stop him from playing with humans.
“The fact that somebody has pushed back, or struck out, at Moko is not something that will cause him to change his approach to people,” he says.
Mr Orams says most people are now aware we have to be careful around dolphins, but he is concerned that some “idiots” might still want to harm him.
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