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Above: Senior animal care specialist Andy Ferris
putting a D-tag on Tapeko Dolphin. D-tags
provide important information about the
animals’ underwater movement.
Right: Senior animal care specialist Jamie
Kennedy interacts with Magic in a shallow area
of the dolphin habitat.
Where and how often does Magic sleep? Is Magic a social animal?
“Researchers believe that dolphins sleep by resting one “Magic is a very active young animal and very social
half of their brain at a time, with one side staying alert to as well. He does spend a lot of time involved in social
keep breathing and swimming. They can switch which interactions with many of the dolphins in his group.
side they rest. This type of sleep is called unihemispheric Social interactions include synchronous swimming with
slow wave sleep (USWS). During this time, you may another animal, playing with an enrichment device
see a dolphin sleep by having one eye closed.” with members of his group, and, as a young male, he
rough-houses and plays with his brother. These are all
What do you do for enrichment? normal behaviors for such a social dolphin of his age.”
“Animal care staff make all their interactions with the How does animal care staff interact with Magic?
dolphins fun, positive, and varied. These include the
animal care sessions that are used to care for the animal, “Each member of the full-time animal care team has
along with other enrichment sessions. Magic has a developed a strong bond that will continue to develop
number of favorite enrichment items, such as basketballs over Magic’s entire lifetime here. These incredibly strong
(he is an expert dribbler underwater), artificial kelp that relationships allow the animal care team to provide
he likes to rub on, and as a hand-reared dolphin, he the very best for Magic in terms of veterinary care,
really enjoys his time spent with the animal care team husbandry, enrichment, and welfare. Magic interacts with
interacting both in formal sessions and informal play.” animal care staff all throughout the day in animal care
sessions, enrichment sessions, and randomly throughout
Are there any particularly the day. He also learns very quickly and is a delight for
interesting aspects of his day? the team to teach him and watch him learn.” █
“As Magic gets older, he spends less time with his mother
and more time with the other animals near his age. In
particular, his brother Merlin is one that he has been
spending the most time interacting with. This is similar to
what we see with wild juveniles; juvenile animals spending
time with other juveniles outside their maternal group.”
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