Michelle

Our animal care staff cares deeply about each and every animal that lives at our Aquarium. Our animals receive health care that’s better than the average person’s, and they live in healthy habitats where they are stimulated each and every day through a variety of enrichment activities (there’s more about enrichment posted on the blog as well).

We hope that this information helps you understand a little bit more about our mission to give people transforming experiences that inspire them to enjoy, respect and protect the natural world.

Dolphins are born in the water and must immediately begin swimming along with the mother, surfacing to breathe, and nursing underwater while staying on the move. That is a lot to do at one time and it is amazing to watch a dolphin calf learn these skills in its first month of life. [how a little warm blooded, air breathing animal can survive in a water environment is a miracle in itself.] These essential activities require a great deal of energy. The sole source of the calf’s energy is through its mother’s very rich milk, which helps it to stay warm and swim through the water.

Dolphin calves are fragile and relatively small, so little changes can impact their health for better or worse. The biggest factor in calf health is its mother. Mother dolphins must learn how to care for their young, and often do this by mimicking older, more experienced females. If mom is inefficient at nursing for whatever reason, she may have trouble providing the calf with the needed nutrients and care that it needs in its first year of life. The calf’s health can rapidly decline and it will have a hard time surviving. Sometimes older, experienced dolphin moms will lend a hand in raising the young, nursing it and escorting the calf while the new mom learns from watching.

At the National Aquarium, our dolphin moms give birth and live in a nursery group with our other calves, and they raise the calves together. Jade and her new calf are lucky enough to have two other female dolphins in the nursing pool who can assist with motherly duties. Aquarium trainers and vets are currently observing the mother and calf to make sure the calf is nursing. Our trainers are prepared to help with feeding if necessary but ultimate survival is depends on the mother and other female dolphins.