Four swimmers have been injured in a series of dolphin attacks on Suishohama beach in the town of Mihama, Fukui prefecture, central Japan. In the early hours of Sunday, a man in his 60s suffered broken ribs and hand bites after being rammed by a dolphin a few meters off the beach. In a separate incident later that morning, a man in his 40s sustained arm bites. Two additional individuals were injured by dolphins later in the day. This brings the total number of such attacks recorded in Fukui to six this year, according to local police.
Signs have been installed on the beach cautioning swimmers against approaching or touching the dolphins. While dolphins are generally not aggressive toward humans, incidents of hostility have occurred before. Scientists suggest that wild bottlenose dolphins may find swimming alongside humans to be incredibly stressful, disrupting their natural behavioral routines.
Similar incidents involving dolphins have been reported in other locations. In 2013, two women in the Republic of Ireland were injured by the same dolphin within a span of ten days, with one suffering a broken rib. In another incident off the Irish coast a year later, a group of swimmers had to be rescued after a dolphin displayed aggressive behavior toward them.
In addition to displaying hostility toward humans, dolphins are known to exhibit extreme violence toward other sea creatures. In Cornwall, England, a bottlenose dolphin was observed flipping a porpoise into the air during an aggressive attack.
These incidents serve as a reminder that while dolphins are generally considered to be friendly, caution is necessary when encountering them in the wild. It is important to respect their natural behavior and maintain a safe distance to ensure the safety of both humans and dolphins.
