Wednesday 28 September 2022 05:32 PM Heartbreaking video captures a mother dolphin pushing the body of her dead calf trends now

Wednesday 28 September 2022 05:32 PM Heartbreaking video captures a mother dolphin pushing the body of her dead calf trends now
Wednesday 28 September 2022 05:32 PM Heartbreaking video captures a mother dolphin pushing the body of her dead calf trends now

Wednesday 28 September 2022 05:32 PM Heartbreaking video captures a mother dolphin pushing the body of her dead calf trends now

This is the sad moment a mother dolphin was seen carrying her dead calf on her back in the middle of the Mediterranean sea. 

The footage was captured by Margarita Samsonova, 29, an environmental content creator, while she was accompanying a research team from AIMM on an expedition off the coast of Albufeira.

They had been on the water for around five hours and were on their way back to the port when they saw approximately 25 dolphins in a pod exhibiting strange behaviours - and then noticed the mother carrying her dead calf. 

Margarita, who lives in Lisbon, believes this is the only time that the behaviour has been witnessed in Europe and it represented a unique insight into animals experiencing grief.

The 29-year-old, who studied Zoology at Oxford Brookes University, said: 'Instantly, I cried, it was really heartbreaking and really painful to watch this.

'At the same time it was really exciting, because this was something new, we realised that this was something that had never been documented before.'

AIMM wrote on their website: 'We witnessed a dolphin behaviour, very rare for this region and got it on camera!'

The dolphins were spotted in waters off New Zealand's North Island, near the Bay of Islands

The dolphins were spotted in waters off New Zealand's North Island, near the Bay of Islands

The footage was captured by Margarita Samsonova, 29, an environmental content creator, while she was accompanying a research team from AIMM on an expedition off the coast of Albufeira

The footage was captured by Margarita Samsonova, 29, an environmental content creator, while she was accompanying a research team from AIMM on an expedition off the coast of Albufeira

A research crew said it noticed the mother with her dead calf after seeing around 25 dolphins behaving unusually

A research crew said it noticed the mother with her dead calf after seeing around 25 dolphins behaving unusually

Margarita said: 'The dolphins were behaving very unusually, they were jumping higher than normal and making very strange vocalizations.

'Then we noticed a mother with a calf, and the calf was dead, and it was clear that she was trying to bring the baby to the surface.

'It really seemed like a moment of grief that was expressed both by the mother and other dolphins.'

The behaviour seen in the video continued for some days, as the mother was observed doing the same for several days after.

Numerous other sightings of the same behaviour were reported up to more than ten days after the initial sighting.

In the past, similar incidents have occurred around the world. In 2019, a mourning bottlenose dolphin was seen carrying the body of her dead calf for days, struggling to come to terms with the youngster's death.

She was spotted in waters in New Zealand's North Island, near the Bay of Islands, according to conservation authorities.

The mother was thought to have had a stillbirth but had been holding onto the body.

Earlier in 2019, a study by a non-profit organisation revealed whales and dolphins will hold 'vigils' for their dead.

The animals will cling onto the lifeless bodies of their offspring for days and will try to keep them safe from predators.

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