"And when the day comes that we can communicate intelligently with dolphins, they may introduce us to the concept of survival without aggression, and the true joy of living, which at present eludes us. In that circumstance what they have to teach us would be infinitely more valuable than anything we could offer them in exchange."

Horace Dobbs, Follow a Wild Dolphin, London: Souvenir Press, 1977 (quoted in "Whale Nation", Heathcote Williams, Jonathan Cape Ltd, 1988)

September, 2007

     Since time immemorial, the dolphins approaching our boats in pure exuberant cheerfulness have always been curious about us; equally, we have been curious about them. We celebrate the dolphin across cultures in our literature, mythology, art, healing modalities, even immortalising the dolphin to our celestial ocean in the stellar constellation known as Delphinus visible worldwide except in the Antarctic. The Native American gave the name of A'LUL'QUOY to the dolphin, translated it means "to go in peace and to protect." They are our protectors. Stories go back in antiquity of dolphins protecting humans from drowning by either pushing them up for air or pushing them towards the shore. The most recent case, in 2004, is of a pod of dolphins protecting a group of swimmers from a great white shark attack off the North Island of New Zealand.



     There is a new eco-tour being developed by the Wildlife Conservation Society of Burma in co-operation with the Ministry of Fisheries to bring tourism to the community of Myesaun (population 1500) on the Irrawaddy River. The Irrawaddy River, 1600 kilometres long, is one of the great rivers of Asia and serves as an economic lifeline for Myanmar. This river is home to approximately 65 to 75 Irrawaddy Dolphins.

     The Irrawaddy Dolphin, Orcaella Brevirostris, can grow to 8 feet, is black and beakless; their calves are a light gray. The association of calf and mother lasts 4 years. Once found in abundant numbers it is now red listed as critically endangered worldwide. One of the most insidious threats to the dolphin is environmental contaminants, such as mercury used to amalgamate gold; however, the Burma government has put a stop to gold mining on the river since last year. In addition, gill net fishing in the protected zone is acceptable but with modifications to allow the dolphins safe passage through the river. It is because of their endangered state that eco-tourism tours are being proposed to the government with the hope of increasing public awareness and securing larger areas of protection for these animals.

     The earliest mention of dolphins on the Irrawaddy is from New T'ang History (Chinese text from about 800 AD as cited in Luce 1966) which mentions trade in 'river pigs' among the Pyu people but no one knows when these dolphins began to help man fish.

     By the village of Myesaun, a 5 hour, relaxed boat ride north from Mandalay, lives a family of 12 to 18 dolphins who live and breed in the 20 mile protected area beginning from Mingun to Myesaun. Here the dolphins and fishermen in joyful collaboration assist each other in harvesting the bounty of the river known as co-operative dolphin fishing. This is the only place where co-operative fishing takes place, dolphins from up the river do not assist fishermen and nobody can explain why. Furthermore, only the female dolphins help man and they train their female calves - a transmission of culture?

     Myesaun is the final destination of the boat, which will also act as your hotel and where you will enjoy hearty Burmese cuisine prepared by the family whose home is the boat. The beds are hard but you will be warm beneath a clean thick duvetprotected by mosquito nets and a good sleep is guaranteed as you are gently rocked by the heartbeat of the river. The best time to go is between October and January.

     When you dock in Myesaun, the welcoming villagers will take you directly to their pagoda, to share their most revered spiritual centre with you, their guest. The pagoda is located outside of their community past fields of growing sweet peas and groundnuts. Only 13 men in this community are fishermen, the others are farmers growing a variety of crops for themselves and their oxen. These fishermen are the only ones who understand the language of the dolphins, some of them recognise the animals from their grandfather's time, and like the dolphins they train their sons to become farmers of the river. The farming of the rivers in cooperation with the dolphins happens early morning and evening, but the dolphins will initiate the activity, for if they want to play, they will frolic and roll around in the river paying little heed to the acoustic signals and net throwing of the fishermen. Acoustic signals include a soft tapping on the side of the canoe with a conical wooden pin or the calling out to the dolphins with a guttural 'turkey call'.

     But when the dolphins are ready to drive the fish towards the fishermen the concentrated synergy between man and animal is palpable. To see their splashes, the circling and diving of birds, the visible blows, and the sound of respirations is trance inducing. Then the language of the dolphin begins: a fluke splash says, "follow me," a fluke held horizontally - "get your throw net ready," the fluke bent sharply to the right or left means "throw the net this way," and as the fishermen haul up their catch the dolphins enjoy the fish that get away. They have trained man well. It is an amazing relationship to watch humans reaching out to the dolphins and the dolphins reaching out to us, each helping the other in a world that we both share.

     Just like us, dolphins are known to exhibit complex social behaviors. They have a language of squawks when socialising with one another, and a social hierarchy. They form family groups and engage in co-operative behavior. These dolphins hold an important lesson for us; the lesson is not about them but about ourselves. They behave kindly towards us; indeed, they have gone in peace and have protected us. We on the other hand have systematically slaughtered them and have degraded their habitat. With the opening up of eco-tourism, it is hoped that familiarity with the animals will be increased and that in turn will encourage further action to protect them and their habitat.

     The present favourable position on the part of the government, the Department of Fisheries, the fishermen of Myesaun, Mr. Chit and the staff of the Irrawaddy Dolphin Project of Wildlife Conservation Society towards the dolphins gives us all hope for their continued survival.

     To experience the dolphin co-operative fishing eco-tour, permission must be granted by the Ministry of Fisheries of Myanmar - please allow two months. The contact person is Mr. Aung Myo Chit, Co-ordinator for the Irrawaddy Dolphin Project, Wildlife Conservation Society, email - nkgmaymyo@gmail.com or call Mr. Chit directly to his Mandalay office at (02) 24344.

     Source: Raffles Bulletin of Zoology. "Facultative Fishwater Cetaceans of Asia, their Ecology and Conservation." Editors: Thomas A. Jefferson and Brian D. Smith.