Pelorus Jack: Dolphin GPS

Imagine that your ship is lost in the middle of the New Zealand's Pelorus Sound, a waterway. You need to get to the French Pass.There is no GPS, barely any maps, and no knowledgeable person to guide you. Your crew is starting to lose hope, and you are desperate to have some instructions to guide you. But then all of a sudden, a dolphin surges up ahead of you.You start to follow the dolphin because you have no other option, and he navigates you to the French Pass. When he leaves you, you realize that he is your savior. 

This isn't fiction; this is true! Pelorus Jack is the name of a Risso's dolphin (living in New Zealand) that helped ships navigate from Pelorus Sound to the deadly French Pass. The water in the French Pass is capable of reaching a speed of eight knots. However, Pelorus Jack never went through the French Pass itself. He was first noticed in 1888. The dolphin loved to swim along boats and ride their bow waves.  

As the years passed, Pelorus Jack's popularity grew. But in the early 1900's, someone shot him. Fortunately, he survived. This led to people wanting Pelorus Jack to be protected by law. So in 1904, an order in the council stated that this dolphin be protected by law. In fact, he was the first dolphin to be protected by the government. By then, Pelorus Jack had become a tourist attraction. 

But when the admired dolphin died, nobody knew what had happened. The most likely cause was of old age-the dolphin was 24 years old. However, years after his death, Pelorus Jack still remains one the most famous dolphins. 

Most people believe that primates are the smartest animals on the Earth. But Pelorus Jack displays that dolphins too rival the intelligence of primates. He also displays selflessness, a trait rarely seen in humans. 

If you want to see this incredible dolphin in action, see this quick video: Pelorus Jack Video 

Pelorus Jack

   Source: http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/4696/the-story-of-pelorus-jack  

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The Potful of Wisdom

The stories of Birbal always have been my all-time favorites. Today, I am going to share one of my favorite stories. This story is special to me as my great-grandpa used to tell my mom and my mom told this story to me. Hope you’ll enjoy it too.

One day, an envoy from the court of the kingdom of Ceylon came to Emperor Akbar’s court on an unusual mission. He announced, “I have been sent by my king to ask you for a potful of wisdom. You have very wise men at your court, so my king’s request will be fulfilled here. ” Everybody including Akbar was surprised by this strange request. Was it ever possible to accomplish this request? Emperor Akbar knew only Birbal could solve this mystery. Birbal had proved himself to be the most reliable minister at the court, time and again. So Akbar ordered Birbal to take care of this matter. Birbal assured him that the king of Ceylon would have his potful of wisdom. But to finish this task he asked for some time-perhaps a few weeks. The envoy agreed for this.

That evening Birbal sent for his attendant to bring a few clay pots with narrow necks. When he came back, Birbal told him to follow him to the pumpkin patch. Then Birbal carefully placed the pot over a pumpkin flower. Next, he directed the attendant to place the other pots the same way. When he finished placing the last pot, Birbal said, “Keep an eye on the pots and don’t let them be moved. I’ll have them collected later.”

After few weeks the Emperor asked Birbal if he had finished the task. Birbal replied, “I should be able to have the pot filled in a fortnight.” A fortnight later, he came to the pumpkin patch to check on the pots. He was very pleased to see the pumpkins were as big as the pots. He was very satisfied with his attendant’s work. Later Birbal had the envoy summoned to the court. He informed that the potful of the wisdom is ready. The next moment his attendant came, in carrying a tray with a pot in it. Birbal presented the pot to the envoy and enunciated to the envoy, ”You may take this to your king. But our valuable pot must be returned empty and intact. The fruit of wisdom that it contains, to be of any value, must be removed without a scratch!” Birbal also added that they had more if the king needed any extra wisdom.

 The envoy asked the Emperor permission to leave and returned to his country. He offered the potful of wisdom to the king and informed the king of Birbal’s message. When king took a look of the pot, he just found a pumpkin inside the pot. He realized that there is no match for Birbal. He admired Birbal a lot.

Back at the court, Emperor Akbar eagerly wanted to eye Birbal’s pot of wisdom. To his surprise, it was just a pumpkin inside the pot. He was very pleased with Birbal. Once again, Birbal saved the Emperor’s honor!!!

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Winter The Dolphin

On December 10, 2005 a 2 month old dolphin was found off the coast of Mosquito Lagoon trapped in a crab trap. Jim Savage , a fisherman, found the dolphin and decided to free it. After he freed the dolphin he called Fish And Wildlife Conservation Commission. The rescue party came and took her back to the center. Since the dolphin was found in the season of winter, they decided to call her Winter. Winter was placed in a holding tank. But the unfortunate dolphin lost her tail because of the rope that was wrapped around Winter's tail when she got trapped. All that was left was a stump. So Winter worked in her new condition by moving the stump from side to side ( a dolphin's tail usually moves up and down ). Although this method of swimming may be useful for the dolphin, it prevented her muscles from growing properly. A prosthetic limb maker, Kevin Carrol decided to help Winter by making a prosthetic tail. When the tail was completed they put it on Winter. Winter had to be retrained to swim the correct way as dolphins should swim. However, Winter can only wear her new tail for a hour or less each day because if she wears it too long, it will damage her skin. Today, Winter is very healthy and happy at Clearwater Marine Aquarium at Florida.

   

The movie, 'Dolphin Tale' is inspired by Winter's story and the real winter plays herself in it. I really like  movies based on true stories. Because of this movie, I get to know about Winter's fight for survival visually. What I like the most about Winter is she didn't relinquish the fight. It was really hard for everyone as nobody was certain about her fate. But there was a miracle and Winter's story has a happy ending. After all,we do love happy endings, don't we ?

You can meet Winter HERE.

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