Background

Flipper, a 10-to-12 year-old Bottlenose dolphin, was captured in Santa Catrina Bay in 1984 and transported to Santos, near Sao Paulo, Brazil, where he spent the next nine years of his life in a small tank at a dolphinarium in solitary confinement most of the time.

At the end of 1991, the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) successfully applied to the Brazilian Federal Court for custody of Flipper. This was under a Brazilian law passed in 1934, which prohibited the exhibition of marine mammals in captivity.

For the next nine months there was uncertainty over Flipper's future, whilst WSPA considered whether or not to remain a partner in the dolphin release project called 'Into the Blue.' If WSPA had remained a partner, Flipper would probably have been transferred to a sanctuary in the Caribbean islands of the Turks and Caicos. However, when the decision was taken to withdraw from the programme, WSPA's Chief Executive, Andrew Dickson, decided to attempt to return Flipper to the water from where he had been taken, at Santa Catarina.

In November, 1992, Richard O'Barry, the American dolphin pioneer in dolphin rehab work and former trainer of the dolphins in the TV series 'Flipper,' was appointed as project director. O’Barry would work with WSPA's Sao Paulo office, managed by Field Officer Marco Ciampi and a team of WSPA volunteers. O’Barry flew to Brazil at the end of November, and the work to return Flipper to the wild began.

Executive Summary

The task of the project team was to safely transfer Flipper from his tank at the disused dolphinarium in Santos to the bay at Laguna, some 400 miles away, and then to prepare him for his return to the wild. Speed was essential, as the condition of the tank was rapidly deteriorating and Flipper's life was in danger.

Project Director Richard O'Barry and Field Officer Marco Ciampi undertook the work at Santos. O’Barry concentrated on familiarizing himself with Flipper in the tank, and Marco undertook the various administrative tasks that are always necessary, such as obtaining a license for the move and finding a way to transport Flipper the 400 miles. At the same time a team of volunteers went to Laguna to commence construction of a sea pen, which would house Flipper when he was taken to Laguna.

The team discovered that Flipper had been captured in 1984 at Laguna near the small fishing village of Ponta da Barra. The fishermen there work with the dolphins to catch fish, and some of them remembered the capture of Flipper. All the dolphins in the bay have been given names by the fishermen, and they assured us that Flipper's mother, whom they called Riscadeira, was still alive.

The immediate problem was how to transfer Flipper to Laguna. The route by road over the mountains was quite hazardous, and the aircraft, which the Brazilian military had offered, unfortunately, was not available. As a last resort, WSPA's chief executive authorized the lease of a large helicopter, and the move was able to go ahead.

Final medical tests were taken, and Flipper was declared fit to travel and free from any disease he might have caught during his captivity. On January 17, 1993, a Sunday, Flipper was loaded into a helicopter, which took off from the beach at Santos to the cheers of 5,000 Brazilians.

Flipper traveled in a wooden box containing iced water and foam rubber, and during the five-hour journey, O'Barry remained in the box with him. On arrival, Flipper was carried gently to the sea pen and released.

For the next six weeks, Flipper was encouraged to catch live fish and to communicate with the other dolphins who swam outside his pen. The dolphin learned very quickly and O'Barry soon advised his team that Flipper was ready for release into the open water.

On March 2, 1993, a Tuesday, the fence was cut and Flipper was finally free. Led by O'Barry, Flipper swam into the open bay and for some 30 minutes stayed in close proximity, then suddenly, Flipper leaped out of the water and was gone.

Since his release in March, Flipper has been documented with video and photos on numerous occasions. He was clearly identifiable by a freeze brand on his dorsal fin.

After a couple of weeks at Laguna, he swam north up the coast with a small group of dolphins. The sightings since then have been at various places along the Brazilian coast. He was last positively identified in mid-July, more than four months after his release, looking fit and well nourished-and swimming free.

Preliminary Work at Santos

The work to prepare Flipper for release began on November 21st, 1992, when O'Barry arrived at the so-called Oceanarium to examine the dolphin and his surroundings. Ric was horrified at the depressing sight of the place. After meeting with Mario and Lehla Vicente, the dolphin's former trainers, it was clear they would be of little or no help to the project. They were opposed to removing the dolphin and wanted WSPA to simply go away.

For the next few days O’Barry and Marco Ciampi visited Flipper's original capture site and began gathering information on Flipper and the local dolphin pods. They met with scientists and researchers from the Institute of Marine Mammal Studies in Florianopolis to learn more about the dolphins in Laguna and discovered that a dolphin population study had been made there over the last three years by Dr. Mario Rollo Jr., a marine mammal researcher at the University of Sao Paulo. Detailed information on this dolphin pod, their number, behavior and feeding habits would be invaluable to the team to help with preparing Flipper for his return to that area. On November 26th, the team traveled to Laguna and interviewed several local fishermen who knew many of the dolphins by name and even remembered Flipper's capture. The fishermen also said that they believed Flipper's mother to be a dolphin called Riscadeira who still lived in the area. This was incredible news, and obviously the possibility of returning Flipper to his mother was tremendously exciting for the team. Later that same day O’Barry and Marco witnessed for themselves the symbiotic relationship between the human and dolphin populations in Laguna. Some of the local pods were seen herding Tainha, the local mullet fish, ashore to a line of fishermen standing in the water, waiting with their nets. As the nets are thrown into the sea, some of the fish turn and try to escape the nets, and in so doing swim straight back toward the waiting dolphins, who then catch them with ease. It is a fascinating sight, and it is obvious how important this working relationship is to both parties involved. As one fisherman explained, 'We are nothing without the dolphins. We could not catch a single kilo of fish without their help.'

On November 29th, researching the area, the team found the perfect place for the 'halfway house,' the sea pen which would be Flipper's home during the re-adaptation work. The site was near a small fishing village, Ponta da Barra, close to the mouth of the channel leading from the lagoon out to sea. Here the water is the deepest, the cleanest and the local dolphins pass by the area every day when entering and leaving the lagoon.

O’Barry and Marco now set about finding local helpers and making contact with the various people and authorities who would be needed for the project. By December 1st, with the right people and the right materials, the sea pen construction began, which enabled the team to return to the Oceanarium at Santos, where the full horror of Flipper's situation soon became apparent.

O’Barry: 'In 30 years of working with dolphins, this tank offers some of the worst conditions I have ever seen. It provides no shade, and the sun is seriously burning the dolphin’s sensitive skin. The filtration system doesn’t work properly, and the water is filthy and warm. Flipper is literally swimming in his own waste and urine. The bottom of the tank is a foot thick in raw sewage, years of accumulated dolphin faeces. A human being would not have survived what this dolphin has had to put up with. It's a miracle he's still alive.'

The tank was only 10m wide and 5m deep, and indeed the water was badly polluted with faeces and heavy in chlorine, which had been used to make the water appear cleaner than it was. This and the lack of shade meant severe problems for Flipper, as WSPA project veterinarian Dr. Marco Carneiro discovered. Flipper had chronic eye infections, which forced him to keep his eyes closed much of the time against the sting of the polluted water. The skin on his head was suffering from sunburn; his body was bleached by chlorine and the scorching sun; and according to Dr. Carneiro, Flipper may have been suffering muscular problems. This was due to the lack of space for swimming and also because of his damaged left pectoral fin, which was dislocated during his capture. As a young dolphin, he was hauled into a fishing boat by that fin. Without shade, the water temperature during the day could rise to 30 degrees Celsius, cooling considerably at night. Such temperature fluctuations can be dangerous and, according to some biologists, could have been a contributing factor to the death of Carolina, the Oceanarium's other dolphin who died in 1990, approximately only 15 years of age.

From December 5th, O’Barry was with Flipper night and day. Flipper was fed around 15 kilos of assorted dead fish every day without having to perform for his food. In fact, O’Barry discouraged Flipper from performing any tricks or other trained behavior. The work at this stage was two-fold: (1) Ric and Flipper getting to know each other and (2) providing the dolphin with first aid, cleaning his environment and healing his wounds.

In the first week O’Barry spent as much time as possible in the water with Flipper. This process was crucial to the project's success to alleviate Flipper's stressful situation at the tank and to prepare him for the work ahead. Flipper had been in isolation for several years and the work to gain his trust and cooperation required time and patience. It was clear from the beginning that Flipper was not as active as he should have been, even considering the limits of his small enclosure. When he did swim, he swam counter-clockwise around his tank, but mostly he just floated on the surface, at the southwest wall of the tank facing the ocean, which he could not see. Occasionally he would swim to a small grimy underwater window near the main entrance to the Oceanarium, and when the door was opened Flipper could hear the noise and would swim to the window to see who had come to visit him. Sometimes the Vicente's children would play near this door-the family lived in the Oceanarium-and Flipper would watch them through this window, his only other view of the outside world.

O’Barry noted: 'Habitat dictates behavior. This dolphin lives in a very depressing habitat, and his behavior seems to be that of a very depressed dolphin.'

The team also set about making improvements to the Oceanarium. Using some thick blue netting strung up like a tent over the tank, they gave Flipper his first respite from the burning sun in eight years. They then turned their attention to cleaning the tank itself.

The water was putrid and, with the black sludge that coated the bottom of the tank, quite hazardous, as some of the team's divers discovered. One diver became physically sick and needed medical treatment. Another had skin peeling from his hands that had been exposed to the sewage at the bottom of the tank. Amongst this sludge the team discovered a variety of dangerous items such as broken glass, beer cans, rocks and even clothes hangers, any of which could have killed the dolphin had he attempted to swallow them.

To clean the tank, a hose four inches wide was used to vacuum the floor, the sewage being pumped into a smaller holding tank. Attempts to vacuum the sludge proved difficult, since the hose would continually get blocked up, and disturbing the sediment turned the water black, producing an odor of raw sewage throughout the Oceanarium. The team hoped the filter system would be able to clean, at least partly, the water in the tank, but over the next few days it became apparent that the filters had stopped working. The filter system was an impossible tangle of rusting pipes and containers, customized beyond understanding, but which had previously been working to a degree. Rather than try to sort out the problem themselves (any delay would have risked Flipper's health), O’Barry and Marco held a press conference on December 15th, declaring an emergency and appealing for help. With the aid of a pool company and the local fire brigade, new attempts were made to clean the water, repair the filters and add fresh seawater to the tank.

The fire brigade laid a hose from the sea, 200m across the beach and using one of their fire trucks pumped in the seawater. Examining the filter system, the fire brigade inspector informed the team that he believed the filter system had been sabotaged; otherwise, it should have been working. Without knowing where the exact problem was, he could not repair it. Several weeks later, Mario Vicente, who had disappeared after the filter problems occurred, offered to repair the system if WSPA paid him $1,000. Evidently he knew exactly where the damage was.

Following the fire brigades' visit and after conferring with the local judicial authorities, WSPA was given the services of two federal police officers who would watch the tank at night. With the security team to help during the day, this gave Flipper round-the-clock armed protection. Since Mario Vicente had gone on record saying he believed the dolphin would not leave the tank alive, such protection was not excessive.

As for Flipper there were still problems. Even though he was eating well, some 12 to 15 kilos of mixed fish every day, his health was deteriorating. By December 26th his right eye was almost completely closed, and despite O’Barry’s constant attention, Flipper was becoming more and more depressed. On December 27th, Flipper rammed the wall of the tank hard enough to send vibrations through the whole structure, cutting and bruising his head in the process. This behavior often occurs with depressed dolphins in captivity, and according to a local veterinarian, Dr. Deuscelia, it was not the first time Flipper had done this. The next day consultant veterinarian Dr. George Baker arrived from Miami to examine Flipper and over the next few days Dr. Baker, Dr. Carneiro and Dr. Deuscelia observed and discussed the various problems. It was clear that Flipper's health was rapidly deteriorating as a result of his polluted environment and that he was now in grave danger.

O’Barry continued to spend time in the water with Flipper and feed him as much as he wanted to eat. Keeping Flipper as happy as possible was all that was important at this point. O’Barry even started sleeping in a hammock at the tank so that he could be with Flipper constantly. Flipper was still being given a variety of dead fish to eat but by January 14th O’Barry had switched Flipper to dead Tainha, the mullet fish the wild dolphins eat in Laguna. He had been told by the dolphin's former keepers that Flipper would not eat Tainha, so his adaptation to the new food was an important step.

Finally the day arrived to move Flipper to Laguna. It was January 17th. Flipper had been given some more medication for his cuts from ramming the wall, some Kaopectate for suspected diarrhea and had been given only eight kilos of fish the day before in preparation for the flight.

The preliminary work was over. It had been mostly first-aid work; the healing could only begin in Laguna. There Flipper would re-experience the tides and currents, hear the local sounds and meet other dolphins. Once again he would feel the natural rhythms of the sea.

Building the Sea Pen

The work to build the pen began early in December when two villagers from Ponta da Barra began putting the fence's timber supports in place. These poles ranged from five to ten inches in diameter and between 3m and 6m in length. There were 39 poles to be installed, which would support 140m of fencing, forming the third side of a triangle that also contained a beach and a line of boulders. The two villagers set about digging and hammering the poles into the seabed and linking the poles to a ¾-inch steel cable strung along the area to be fenced. By the time the scuba-diving team arrived on New Year's Eve, all but one of the poles were in place. The last pole couldn't be secured until the divers arrived since this part of the pen's area had too many rocks on the seabed. These rocks had to be dragged out of the way by the dive team before the last timber could be lowered into position and secured with galvanized wire cable, anchoring the pole to those same surrounding rocks.

The diving work was to take seven days with the team working in pairs, each pair spending up to six hours under the water every day. The remoteness of the area prevented the team from refilling their air cylinders so an air compressor was used instead, pumping the air down to the divers, working at a depth of between one and five meters. At this point the sea pen team did not know when Flipper would be arriving. No one knew. All they knew was to make the pen ready as soon as possible. The original estimate was for three to four days, but that didn't take into account the poor working conditions the divers would face.

Working in soft sand stirred up sediment, obscuring vision made worse by the strong tides and currents, the water level changing at least 1m in the course of a day. In addition it was raining hard for nearly all of that week, flooding a local river, which washed more sediment into the sea. On average the visibility for the divers was no more than 30 cm, which meant the team had to work virtually blind.

The fence itself was a black plastic mesh ¼ inch thick and came in four sections, each about 70m long and 2m wide. The pieces were laid out on the beach in two strips, 140m in length. A small piece from one end was cut and added to the other end, producing three strips that would be used to cover the depth in the deepest part of the pen. The fence laid out on the beach looked like a series of upside-down steps.

With some volunteers who happened to be near the beach, the team joined the sections of fence together. Using galvanized wire, they wove it through the separate pieces of fence. The joins were reinforced with yellow zip and lock tags. Weaving with steel wire is not easy and it took most of a day before the fence was ready to be dragged into the water and floated alongside the timber poles.

Using the air compressor, the divers pulled the fence into place at the deep end first, trimming the plastic in some parts to fit it over rocks and adding to other parts to cover gaps, created by the currents pulling away some of the sand. At each pole the fence was attached in three places, using wire looped around the pole at sea level, sea bed level and one in between. Then 1m-long steel rods shaped like tent pegs were hammered into the sand, pinning the fence to the sea bed.

Moving Flipper - The Options

From the beginning of December to the middle of January, WSPA office in Brazil tried to secure the cooperation of Brazilian government authorities to help with Flipper's transfer from Santos to Ponta da Barra 700km away. Flipper was a Brazilian dolphin being returned to his Brazilian home as a result of a Brazilian law and a Brazilian judge's order. It did not seem unreasonable, therefore, to expect the authority's help in carrying out this task. Unfortunately bureaucratic entanglements defeated this hope. Since it was unclear what help if any would be offered to transfer Flipper, a number of transportation methods, some involving the government, some not, had to be considered.

Removing a dolphin from water for transportation is, for that dolphin, a very stressful experience. To reduce the stress to a minimum it is essential to ensure that the move is as simple, comfortable and as quick as possible.

During transport, Flipper would be placed into a 'travel box,' approximately three and a half meters long and one meter wide. This wooden box would be reinforced with a steel frame, waterproofed inside, padded with several layers of foam rubber. It would hold at least 300 litters of cool water. The padding is necessary to absorb some of Flipper's weight and to keep him as steady as possible during transportation. In water a dolphin doesn't feel his own weight, but out of the water, the dolphin is suddenly subject to gravity, like everything else. To the dolphin, this is like suddenly gaining 300 kilos of weight, which brings stresses to bear on muscles and organs. To carry Flipper to and from this box, a canvas sling would be used. This stretcher would be tailored to Flipper's measurements, leaving holes for his pectoral fins and having foam padding to protect his head and, especially, his eyes. The sling would be carried with two 3m-aluminum poles held by eight people. Flipper and the sling would be placed inside the travel box, which would already be in place aboard the transportation.

There were four possible modes of transportation: helicopter, plane, truck and boat. The first choice would be by helicopter, which would offer the simplest and quickest journey, since it could land next to the Oceanarium, collect Flipper and fly him direct to the sea pen, virtually landing in the water only five hours later. The difficulty would be in finding a helicopter large enough to carry the WSPA team, and Flipper, who by himself would take up an area 3.5m long and 1m wide and weigh 300 kilos or more to the load.

Second choice was by plane. If WSPA was to receive government assistance, it would be from the military airforce, which had informed WSPA that they did not have the necessary helicopter but might have a plane available. This would involve taking Flipper to the nearest airbase, Guaruja, which was 20km away. This would obviously create the additional problem of transporting Flipper to and from the plane, which would require the use of a specially kitted out truck. The driving alone would add four to five hours to the journey time, which with the flight, as well as loading and unloading delays would probably total some nine to ten hours.

The third option was to use a truck for the whole journey, though this was rejected unless there was absolutely no alternative. Driving 700km would have meant at least 15 hours on the most dangerous, accident-prone roads in Brazil. If there were any problems during the drive, Flipper would be stranded hours away from help. The risk to him was deemed too high.

Lastly, the team considered using a boat, which would also present its own unique problems. As with a plane, a truck would be required to move Flipper to the boat and at the other end, probably from it as well, since the water there was quite shallow. Placing Flipper on or in a boat would cause considerable stress to him, with the rolling action of waves even in relatively calm water. If a water-filled hold was used in which Flipper could swim during the boat trip, a great deal of work would have to be done to clean away any chemicals or oil, and to cover or remove any sharp objects in the hold. The wave action, especially in a storm, could throw Flipper from one side of the ship to the other on a journey, which would take at least 24 hours. This option was ruled out, too.

Of all these choices, the first was by far the easiest and safest for Flipper, whose health was deteriorating while the military and civilian authorities continued to procrastinate. Letters of explanation and requests were exchanged without a firm decision being reached. Meanwhile, WSPA had found a private helicopter company, VOTEC, which owned a Sikorsky SK1N transport helicopter capable of fulfilling Flipper's needs. The helicopter was leased full-time to the state oil company, Petrobras, which used it to ferry personnel and materials between Rio de Janeiro and the offshore oilrigs. On January 14, Petrobras released VOTEC from its contractual obligations for one day, a Sunday since on Sundays the helicopter was only on standby. The next Sunday was the 17th and Flipper, in Ric's view, might not remain healthy enough for transportation if he had to wait until the following Sunday on the 24th. Also on the 14th, WSPA received from IBAMA the official license to move the dolphin. The next day, January 15th, VOTEC confirmed the helicopter's availability for Sunday 17th, just two days away, providing the weather was clear. And it was.

The negotiations to obtain transport for Flipper had started six weeks before and yet ended in a frantic rush over a four-day period and it is to the credit of the WSPA team that the arrangements and logistics involved in the move were worked out and executed so successfully on the day.

The Move

On the afternoon of Sunday 17th, the Sikorsky helicopter touched down on the beach next to the Oceanarium. After a few readjustments to the transport box so that it could be maneuvered into the correct position in the helicopter, the signal was given to take Flipper out of the tank. A team of divers and helpers netted the dolphin, pulled him out of the water and placed him carefully on his tailored stretcher, then carried him across the beach and lifted him into the helicopter.

All of this activity was carried out as quickly and quietly as possible to avoid disturbing Flipper anymore than was necessary. Keeping down the noise was especially important on the beach where thousands of people had gathered to say good-bye to Flipper.

Flipper, who remained calm and still throughout this, was put aboard and freeze-branded on his dorsal fin was freeze branded, the brand having been made cold in liquid nitrogen and then held to his dorsal fin for exactly 23 seconds. The brand was based on the Brazilian flag and would be visible for a year or two, then finally fade completely, allowing Flipper to become the anonymous wild dolphin he was born to be.

Solar protection cream was spread over Flipper's body. The cream contained active zinc oxide, and a Vaseline/lanolin mixture to avoid excess dehydration. During the trip the dolphin's skin was kept wet through the application of additional iced water. The box already contained over 300 liters.

O’Barry climbed into the icy box with Flipper and placed his hand under the dolphin's pectoral fin. Flipper would know O’Barry was with him, that he was not alone, and together the two of them would come through this ordeal. This was the culmination of hundreds of hours in the bonding process and it would continue for another five. The helicopter left Santos at 1:45 p.m., landing in Ponta da Barra at 7 p.m., less than 100m from the sea pen. As they arrived, the team on board could see through the helicopter's windows the hundreds of people who had gathered to see the now famous dolphin. There were even banners saying, 'Welcome Home, Flipper.'

Flipper was carried from the helicopter through the throngs of people, straight into the water, and released into the pen to the cheers of the onlookers. Even with the WSPA team and 10 police officers, it was difficult at first to keep the crowd back, away from Flipper during his first few minutes in his new home.

His body was very stiff and his movements were quite sluggish to begin with. Ric had to support him and guide him to the deeper water. Flipper was obviously disoriented and confused, the team had expected this, though it was still a concern to see this. But after 15 minutes, he was swimming more freely and Ric fed him three kilos of fish that had been brought from Santos. The fact that Flipper ate this so soon was a clear signal that he was okay. For the whole of the team, there was a great sense of relief. The last few days particularly had been fraught with anxiety, but Flipper had made it to the sea. The hard work and most of the fears were over with. Now the real healing process could begin in undoing the damage captivity had inflicted on him.

Rehabilitation The work to help Flipper relearn the ways of a wild dolphin began as soon as he was released into the sea pen, where for the first time since 1984 he could again experience swimming in the sea. O'Barry explained that a great deal of the healing process would take place by simply placing Flipper in the halfway house. There, the natural rhythms of the sea, sounds, tides, currents and the presence of wild dolphins would all play their part in helping Flipper readapt to life in the wild. The rest of the work would involve giving him the opportunity to catch and eat live fish, giving him plenty of exercise to strengthen his body and encouraging him to start using his sonar again.

In his first full day in the pen, Flipper was given only dead Tainha to eat, just as in his last days in the Oceanarium. During the course of a feeding, four to five kilos three times a day, the fish would be thrown to different parts of the pen, encouraging Flipper to swim after his food and exercise his muscles. The poor visibility in the water would now work to the project's advantage, encouraging Flipper to use his sonar to locate the food. Apart from his growing agility, twisting and turning to chase after each fish thrown into different parts of the pen, the team were also pleased to see Flipper exploring his new home by swimming up and down the fence and all around the enclosed area. He could now swim in a straight line. For eight years, all Flipper could do was swim in a circle, whereas now he could swim in a triangle, as one member pointed out.

The following day, January 19th, was very important to the project with two major achievements that surprised the team, occurring so early on. While one team member made the daily inspection of the fence underwater, 'clicks' were heard. These are the echolocation signals used by dolphins. Was it Flipper? We thought so. We checked. And yes, it was Flipper. This was verified by a diver in the water outside the fence. Without being able to see the diver because of the poor visibility of the water, Flipper could nevertheless swim to the exact spot where the diver was at the fence, locating him with sonar. Mario Rollo's hydrophone confirmed this later.

The team had tested Flipper's sonar at Santos in the tank, but it could not be detected. O’Barry had attempted to feed Flipper at night on several occasions so the dolphin would have to use sonar to find his food. Hydrophone equipment in the water recorded no sonar, and the following morning would reveal many of the dead fish on the floor of the tank. He explained that this is common in captivity. 'Some dolphins don't use sonar in a tank,' he said. 'It reflects off the walls, confusing them and forcing them to be silent. It's like forcing someone to wear a blindfold for the rest of their life.'

The world of sound is the primary sense for dolphins, and O’Barry believes such sensory deprivation is one of the most damaging aspects of captivity. Another is removing the dolphin from its family.

The second achievement of the day was Flipper's first live fish in more than eight years. In the wild, dolphins eat only live food. It is difficult for people to understand what it must be like for an animal to be forced to eat what it would consider as unnatural and possibly repulsive. However, once this has been forced on them, it can be difficult to reverse. Fortunately this appeared to be just another obstacle for Flipper to overcome. By the end of only his second day in the pen he had eaten seven live fish.

Over the next week, the ratio of dead to live fish for feeding was gradually tilted in favor of the living, so that near the end of January, Flipper was chasing and eating only live Tainha. Also by the end of this first week, Flipper had recovered from most of the pollution-related problems he had experienced in Santos. By now both his eyes were open, clear and bright. The skin on his head and snout was healing well and overall his skin tone was darkening now that he was out of the bleaching chemicals at the tank. Furthermore, his movements were becoming more like those of a wild dolphin. In captivity, dolphins are often stationary and lift their heads out of the water. This is taught to them, though in the wild this does not happen. When swimming, wild dolphins will 'arch' in the water, bringing the top of their head to the surface to breathe, then their body rolls forward bringing their dorsal fin out of the water and on until the last part of their body to go back underwater is the tip of their tail. In the pen, Flipper was now beginning to do this.

Some of the credit for Flipper's recovery should be given to 'Patagonia,' a penguin who had been found on a nearby beach and given into WSPA's care. 'Pagonia,' as she was nicknamed, was a young Magellan penguin (Spheniscus magellanicus), a species that has breeding colonies along the Argentine coast of Patagonia. These penguins migrate northward as far as Uruguay and even southern Brazil, following ocean currents in search of food. This particular penguin had probably been left behind from the previous season due to her weakened condition. She was fed with Tainha containing vitamin supplements to help her speed her recovery, which she achieved remarkably quickly. In the sea pen with Flipper, Patagonia aided the rehabilitation work by making the dolphin compete for food. In the wild, Flipper would face competition with other dolphins for fish, and at the pen such rivalry with the penguin made Flipper chase and catch as many fish as possible and as fast as he could. He had to be fast, the penguin certainly was. Pagagonia stayed with the project for almost four weeks. She had always been free to leave whenever she wanted; she was not a prisoner. In her time with the team she had become very popular, bringing a smile to anyone who saw her paddling in the water or waddling around the beach. It was sad when she finally left, but the team's best wishes went with her.

Less than 10 days in the sea pen and Flipper's progress had been phenomenal. By catching his own Tainha, which swam into the enclosure, he had demonstrated his ability to fend for himself. O’Barry and the team were ecstatic, and realized it was now time to set a release date. Unfortunately this was the holiday season in Brazil, and carnival was approaching. This meant the arrival of thousands of tourists in preparation for the four-day festival, some of whom visited the project, hoping to meet and photograph Flipper. Flipper had to be weaned off not only dead fish but also people. He would have to learn to stay away from people and boats if he was to become wild again. If he were released at this point, and he was already, there was the danger that he would come into contact with these tourists, who would follow him, attempt to swim with him, and possibly offer him fish to entice him closer. Were this to happen, it could reverse all our work since it would take Flipper away from the wild dolphins, who would stay away from people, and it would encourage him to again depend on people for his dead food, rather than penguin who had been found on a nearby beach and given into WSPA's care. 'Pagonia,' as she was nicknamed, was a young Magellan penguin (Spheniscus magellanicus), a species that has breeding colonies along the Argentine coast of Patagonia. These penguins migrate northward as far as Uruguay and even southern Brazil, following ocean currents in search of food. This particular penguin had probably been left behind from the previous season due to her weakened condition. She was fed with Tainha containing vitamin supplements to help her speed her recovery, which she achieved remarkably quickly. In the sea pen with Flipper, Patagonia aided the rehabilitation work by making the dolphin compete for food. In the wild, Flipper would face competition with other dolphins for fish, and at the pen such rivalry with the penguin made Flipper chase and catch as many fish as possible and as fast as he could. He had to be fast, the penguin certainly was. Pagagonia stayed with the project for almost four weeks. She had always been free to leave whenever she wanted; she was not a prisoner. In her time with the team she had become very popular, bringing a smile to anyone who saw her paddling in the water or waddling around the beach. It was sad when she finally left, but the team's best wishes went with her.

This delay had two other advantages. Firstly in March, the Tainha season would begin, bringing huge schools of fish to the region, making Flipper's feeding much easier. Secondly, the delay would provide more contact with wild dolphins, which could be monitored at the pen. For Flipper to really succeed in the wild, he would need to be able to integrate and interact with dolphin pods, and the more contact he had at the pen, the easier that would be after his release. Thanks primarily to the site of the sea pen, such contact was quite regular from the beginning, and with the help of Dr. Mario Rollo and local fishermen, it was even possible to identify the dolphins who came to the pen. For monitoring purposes, a contact was accepted as such when it was clear that Flipper and the visiting dolphins were aware of each other. The most regular visits were made by Caroba' and 'Scooby Doo,' two adult males often seen on their own and known to feed in the part of the channel near the pen. Another frequent visitor was 'Riscadeira,' possibly Flipper's mother, who was accompanied by a young dolphin and a newborn calf. All of these dolphins would approach the pen, swim parallel to the fence, usually at some distance, while Flipper would gently push against the fence, his snout pointing right at the visitors. The best encounter came on February 16th with Flipper and Caroba face to face at the fence. Flipper became very excited and started leaping out of the water. Flipper was ready for freedom and wanted out.

The next few weeks passed very slowly for everyone, waiting for the release day. The rehabilitation work continued smoothly enough due to Flipper's ease at adapting to the changes in his life. His behavior and health were much improved over that while in his tank at Santos, though it was not all smooth sailing. There were occasions when Flipper would refuse to chase all his food, preferring to wait for it to be thrown at him. This was pure laziness, and a direct result of captive-induced behavior, spoiling the dolphin whenever he might be depressed. For the project, such antics had to be ignored, especially Flipper's occasional 'squawking' sound, a human-induced noise to gain attention and amuse visitors at a dolphin show. If the team responded to these, it would have encouraged Flipper to be lazy and to ask people for food, both of which had to be avoided. At other times, Flipper, obviously bored, would languish in one part of the pen or swim slowly on his side, again both captive-induced behaviors.

Problems also sometimes occurred in providing Flipper with enough live fish for rehabilitation. Usually after fishermen had caught some fish, a team member would transport the fish, in special containers to the pen where the fish would be stored in 'holding' boxes in the water. Here the fish could remain alive for about two days. Unfortunately it was not possible to guarantee how many fish would be caught each day. It depended on too many factors: weather, ocean currents and dolphins. If there were fish around but for some reason no dolphins 'working' that day, no fish would be caught. This was a problem that occurred several times in the course of the project, and the irony of the situation is that the would-be wild dolphin depending on the help of the already wild dolphins, did nothing to reduce the team's frustration. On these occasions, Flipper's diet had to be supplemented by some dead fish, stored for emergencies. This was tremendously unpopular, since each dead fish given to Flipper felt like it was taking a step backwards. It would also cause problems for O’Barry who, since Santos, was on what he referred to as 'dolphin time.' this meant mimicking the dolphin's experience; sleeping at the tank in Santos, being with the dolphin all day and using a tent next to the pen at night, and eating only when Flipper ate. When live fish was hard to find and Flipper would reject the dead fish, this meant going without a meal for O’Barry as well. Only by following the dolphin's experience could Ric hope to understand Flipper's state of mind and health, giving him an early warning to any problems that might arise.

Nevertheless, the work did progress, and it was with mounting anticipation that everybody waited for the 2nd of March. The team knew Flipper was ready. He had relearned to catch and eat live fish. He was using his sonar again. He had made contact with local dolphins. He behaved like a wild dolphin. His eyes and skin problems were healed. And when March 2nd did arrive, Flipper was ready and the difficult time to let go and say good-bye was at hand.

The Release

Tuesday 2nd of March, the big day. Crowds began gathering along the perimeter fencing early in the morning as the press and television crews made themselves ready. The mayor of Laguna and various municipal officers arrived, along with the police to keep an eye on the crowd. A Navy patrol boat also showed up to ensure that people stay out of the water and boats stay away from the release site.

The WSPA team had placed a sign over the section of fence to be cut and opened as a gate for Flipper's freedom. The sign was in English and Portuguese:

'Good-bye Flipper. Have a great life. WSPA' At 9 a.m. O'Barry and I entered the water. O’Barry gave Flipper one last large feed, while I cut the part of the fence to be used as a gate, leaving the gate intact in only a few places so that it would remain 'closed' until the right moment. At 9:30, three dolphins were sighted nearby in the channel, which is what the team had been waiting for. O'Barry cut the remaining parts of the gate and opened the 'door' for Flipper.

At this point, Flipper had a choice. He could leave or stay. No one could know for sure what he would do. Certainly he was ready for freedom, and the team believed he wanted to be free. Even so, leaving the security of his 'home' for the unknown, outside world must have been a daunting prospect for Flipper. He swam by the open gate several times before following O’Barry out into the channel at 9:45. Flipper spent the next half hour with O’Barry, venturing away, and then returning. With a final leap, Flipper swam off on his own and by 10:30 had caught his first fish in the wild. This was a very exciting moment for everyone concerned with the project.

At midday, Flipper was seen with five other dolphins, some of whom were 'working' with local fishermen, and later Flipper was seen with a female dolphin, performing a mating ritual and competing for her attention. Such early interaction with the local pod was incredibly important to the project and meant the success of four months of difficult but highly rewarding work. From this point on, Flipper's life would be under his own control.

Flipper In the Wild

When Flipper was released on March 2nd, the WSPA team and consultants believed he would remain in the Ponta da Barra/Laguna area. The local pod, some 25 animals, explored a large area covering the open sea near Laguna and the two large lagoons in the area, Lagoa St. Antonio and Lagoa do Imarui. Population and behavioral studies as well as information from local residents indicated this region to be the predominant habitat for the local pod, and the WSPA team felt that Flipper, whether he completely joined the local pod or remained single like 'Caroba,' 'Scooby-Doo,' 'Prego' and other dolphins in the area, would stay near Laguna. While it was believed that some dolphins may venture further afield, there had been no opportunity to study or follow such behavior. That was about to change.

For most of the time between March 2 and March 15, Flipper did stay near Laguna. He was sighted many times each day, sometimes briefly, sometimes for a couple of hours. Reports came in from all over the Laguna area and were followed up either by interviewing 'sighters' or by traveling throughout the area in the Naval patrol boat placed at WSPA's disposal. It was clear that Flipper was exploring his new world. Sometimes he was with other dolphins, sometimes he was alone. He was playing, he was feeding, he was doing everything that the other dolphins were doing. Then he left Laguna.

For four days from March11th to the 14th, Flipper was at the Farol Santa Marta, a lighthouse 20km south of Laguna. He was seen there by fishermen and surfers with whom he was apparently playing and though he arrived there with several dolphins, he stayed on his own when the others left. This was the first indication to the team that watching and studying Flipper might not be as straightforward as had been expected. At this point, the team began distributing 'tracking forms,' which showed a picture of Flipper's freeze-branded dorsal fin, explaining a little about the project and asked for the cooperation of anyone who saw Flipper. The tracking form asked the observer to report when and where Flipper was seen, if he was alone or with other dolphins, and what activity he was engaged in, such as playing or feeding. Thanks to the massive media attention the project received in Brazil, Flipper's story was generally well known. This form would help fine-tune peoples' knowledge of Flipper and focus attention on his travels.

By March 15th only two members of the WSPA team remained in Laguna, O'Barry having temporarily left to have his two broken ribs repaired, while the rest of the team, mostly volunteers, had returned to their 'other' lives. These last two team members would also have to leave in the next few days but not before distributing the forms and making arrangements for local people to contact WSPA to report Flipper's whereabouts. In those last few days for the team a report was made that Flipper had been seen at Ferrugem Beach, 45km north of Laguna. This was surprising news and hard to believe but after interviewing people there it was confirmed that Flipper had visited the area.

on March 20th Flipper was seen at Sonho beach near the town of Pinheira, approximately 85km north of Laguna, where he was filmed by a television news crew. The pictures broadcast showed Flipper with a great many scrapes and scratches, which the news crew wrongly attributed to either rocks or nets. Flipper was described as being exhausted, having swum through a large storm that had hit the region only two days before. The tone of the piece was that Flipper needed help.

That same night Marco Ciampi arranged with the environment police in the area to isolate the beach and keep people away from Flipper. Marco himself arrived to see the dolphin the next day, the 21st, and gave Flipper some fish containing vitamins, glucose and mineral water. Flipper did appear to be tired, quite possibly from his struggles during the storm on the 18th, but had found shelter in this area and was recuperating. O'Barry returned to Brazil and spotted Flipper on March 25th at Gamboa beach, 65km north of Laguna.

O’Barry and Dr. Marco Carneiro both examined Flipper, giving him more vitamins, and identified the cuts as 'rake marks,' which are actually tooth marks sustained in fighting other male dolphins, usually when competing for a female. This is quite common behavior in male Bottlenose dolphins and similar marks had been observed on a number of dolphins in the Laguna area, showing a history of mating competition over the years.

O’Barry and the tracking team followed Flipper's movements every day using a house in Garopaba as a base. Flipper spent 24 days traveling in a 15km radius of Garopaba, 50km north of Laguna. Tracking him and distributing the sighting forms resulted in a wealth of information about Flipper. He was seen quite often playing with surfers and swimmers, and though he continued to catch his own food, such contact was of concern. Then on March 30th, the situation changed. Flipper's wounds were healing well, O’Barry and the team had been educating local people how and how not to behave with Flipper, and fishermen had reported witnessing Flipper catching his own fish, especially at night when the Manjuba (local sardine) entered the shallow waters. On the afternoon of the 30th, Flipper was joined by another dolphin, whom locals then referred to as Xuxa, though Ric called him 'Khan' after his friend and dolphin supporter the Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan. The two dolphins played together for several hours before swimming out to sea. This was the sign the team had been waiting for. Flipper still loved being with people, that was clear, and possibly a result of years of isolated neglect, but also clear was his ability to live and enjoy being in the wild with other dolphins. shelter in this area and was recuperating. O'Barry returned to Brazil and spotted Flipper on March 25th at Gamboa beach, 65km north of Laguna.

Flipper remained in the Garopaba area until April 8th, then disappeared, arriving with two companions in the Bombinhas area on April 10th. He was now 180km north of Laguna. The team received this sighting news from Jose Truda Palazzo, who visited the team on the 12th, following which Ric and Dr. Carneiro set out north on the dolphin's trail. They found Flipper in a sheltered bay with abundant fish, since the Tainha season had arrived, making it easier for Flipper to catch his preferred food.

Flipper was observed in Bombinhas catching his own fish and visiting many of the local beaches with two and on one occasion five other dolphins by Luiz Fabriz, a local oceanographer who helped the team considerably during their time in this region. The news of Flipper was getting better every day. Reports of Flipper playing and 'surfing' with other dolphins indicated that he was happy and healthy. He was now free, alive, well and with his own kind, quite different from O’Barry’s experience of him in Santos.

'When I first met him,' Ric said, 'he was at the edge of death, banging his head on a cement wall.'

On the 18th of April O’Barry and Dr. Carneiro returned to Sao Paulo to take part in a conference on the project, leaving Luiz Fabriz to monitor Flipper's movements in Bombinhas. In total, Flipper stayed in the area for nine days that were confirmed, then for two days further north at Balneaario Camboriu on April 19th and 20th, more than 200km north of Laguna.

Then sightings of Flipper became fewer in number because he was spending less time at beaches and more in deeper water. The cooler weather as winter took hold helped in keeping people out of the sea. Flipper paid more attention to nature, catching fish and playing with other dolphins when there were no people to hang out with. Between April 20th and 27th there were no sightings of Flipper until he arrived at the island of Sao Francisco do Sul, 300km north of Laguna. A WSPA team traveled to the area to contact local people and distribute tracking forms. There were a great many Bottlenose dolphins in this naturally rich environment; plenty of space, calm water and abundant food. The team soon discovered there was a dolphin population study in progress here with a network of people to watch and study the local dolphin pods. With the help of Monica Magallioes, this network offered its assistance, giving WSPA the opportunity to track Flipper in this area. Even so, the size of the region and the large numbers of dolphins made spotting Flipper very difficult, and it was not for five days, until May 2nd, that a confirmed sighting was made. Over the next three weeks, Flipper was seen on four occasions, playing with dolphins, one day playing with children at Vigorelly beach, catching his own food and refusing dead fish offered to him by some fishermen. These reports were only of brief sightings, since he was now spending almost all of his time in the company of dolphins away from the populated places of this vast area. The island of Sao Francisco covered an area of 170 square km with the bay 3km wide and at least 15km long.

Sometimes Flipper was recognized by the freeze brand, sometimes because he would be on his own, leaping out of the water more frequently than other dolphins, and sometimes by his slightly paler skin color. Even with these differences it became increasingly difficult to distinguish him from other wild dolphins. While posing problems in tracking his movements and welfare, it was obviously good news as far as the aims of the project were concerned: to return Flipper to his natural state. Since this was indeed what was happening, it could hardly be surprising that Flipper was not 'sighted' for the next seven weeks. On July 2nd he was seen in the inner part of Sao Francisco bay with two other dolphins, one of whom appeared to be the dolphin called Xuxa-Khan by O’Barry and the fishermen in Garopaba three months before. Flipper and his two companions were also seen leading a group of 20 dolphins around the bay. Even though he had not been seen, such integration with a local pod indicated he must have been with them for some time, during the period he 'disappeared.' After at least 67 days in Sao Francisco do Sul, Flipper continued his northward journey and was seen alone at the Superagui Channel, near Paranagua by a fisherman. Flipper was now 400km north of Laguna.

He was seen here on July 9th and subsequent investigation by WSPA revealed that this area, a wildlife preserve with a wealth of animal, bird and marine life, contained only 'Tucuxi' dolphins (Sotalia fluviatilis). These are very pale gray, who shy from people and boats and measure only 1.5m to 2m in length. Flipper, darker, more confident and almost 3m long, was easy to recognize here. No further sightings of him here suggested he visited the place for only one or two days.

At the time of writing, August '93, the July 9th sighting was the last confirmed report on Flipper. The Superagui area, while rich in life was not an ideal location for him. The Tainha, his usual diet, are fewer in number here, and there are no Bottlenose dolphins in residence. Considering Flipper's northerly course, contact was made and is continued with people and organizations between Superagui and Santos, the next major inhabited area. Since Flipper's regular food and his own kind of dolphin are found to the south, it is to be hoped that Flipper returned to Sao Francisco do Sul, where he had been for more than two months and had integrated so well with the local pod.; There has in fact been a report in mid-August of a single dolphin, seen at a distance, leaping and playing. While the behavior matches that of Flipper, his presence has not been confirmed and this sighting might have been any dolphin.

It is impossible to estimate how far Flipper swam since his release, though wild dolphins have been noted to cover 30 to 40 kilometers a day. However, he has managed to go as far as 400km from his release site, meeting many dolphins and people on the way, swimming through calm water and powerful storms and continuing to feed himself and control his own life. To date there have been over 50 confirmed sightings. Further reports of him will be recorded as they are made, and it is hoped by members of the team that it will be possible to locate and observe Flipper on the first anniversary of his release, March 2nd, 1994.

Conclusions

To determine the success of the project, it is necessary to examine the original aims and research questions: Could Flipper cope with being moved to a new environment? Could he adjust to live fish? Could he catch his own fish? Would he rediscover his sonar? Could he be weaned off people? Would he interact with wild dolphins? All leading to the final question: Could a single dolphin be released and survive in the wild?

The answer to all but one of these questions is an emphatic 'yes.' He could cope with the move, he could catch and adjust to live fish, he could interact with wild dolphins, he did rediscover his sonar and he could survive in the wild. Whether or not he will, in time, be completely weaned off people remains to be seen. As contact with humans diminishes as winter sets in, it is hoped his desire to be with people occasionally will also diminish. However even if it does not, this is not such a large problem. Flipper always initiated any contact and remained in control of those contacts, leaving the people