Sailors Film Rare Dolphin “Stampede”

Sailors Film Rare Dolphin “Stampede”

Boaters often encounter pods of dolphins, but rarely do they experience "super pods," which are formed when several dolphin sub groups gather as one. Only a few have captured this event, among them are photographer Chase Jarvis and explorer Mike Horn

Both were aboard a 110-foot sailboat headed to Cape Town, South Africa, when an estimated 10,000 common dolphins appeared swimming around the boat. "At first, on the horizon, we noticed what appeared to be a giant ball of bait fish," Jarvis stated in his blog post about the encounter. "The water boiled for literally a mile in every direction ... only as it approached at the speed of a swift wave did we see first a nose, then another, then a dorsal fin and then a thousand of them, then more.”

Horn added, “Even after sailing around the world seven times, 140,000 miles, this was the real first super pod I've seen. We were just standing there and all of us were dumbstruck and all of us, all of a sudden had this massive smile."

Scientists believe that super pods are formed for breeding purposes, or large-scale feeding opportunities.

Jarvis and Horn filmed this spectacle event for only a few minutes using several types of cameras they brought along.

"And while it's impossible to truly convey the magic of this experience," Jarvis explained. "I hope these clips give you just a little sliver of what it's like to encounter something so rare and stunning--especially when you least expect it."

Posted by Sophia Andrews on Thursday October 04 2012, 3:43 AM EDT. Ref: Reuters. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, Travel. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0