Dolphins Mastermind Ingenious Bait Heist in World-First Footage
Underwater cameras off the coast of Western Australia have captured footage of bottlenose dolphins in Koombana Bay using their snouts, jaws, and teeth to cleverly steal bait from crab pots. This behavior, which has been observed for decades, is believed to be a world-first. The dolphins have learned to flip traps over and open latched boxes to access the bait. While this behavior is impressive, conservationists are concerned about the potential risks to the dolphins, such as net entanglement. Researchers have developed a "dolphin-safe" method to protect the dolphins and maintain coexistence with crabbers.