Pink dolphin born at Underwater World Singapore

SINGAPORE — Underwater World Singapore (UWS) announced a new member at its Dolphin Lagoon yesterday (Nov 27) — a baby pink dolphin — and Channel NewsAsia got first look at it.

Born at the lagoon on Jul 15, the four-month-old dolphin calf is now approximately one-metre long. His skin is still gray, as pink dolphins only change colour as they are older.

He is clearly a momma’s boy as he mostly swims close beside his mother everywhere she goes, the yet-to-be-named baby dolphin jumps at opportunities to explore waters on his own.

One such opportunity is when his mother, Pann, is being fed. As she enjoyed her meal, the baby dolphin was seen slipping away and circling the lagoon joyfully, until his mother came by to bring him back to her side.

The baby dolphin is still feeding on his mother dolphin’s milk, but has started to show interest in chewing on fish that trainers throw near him. He is also getting to know the other dolphins, playing chasing games now and then.

The Indo-Pacific humpbacked dolphin calf is not the first of its kind born at the lagoon. Back in 2002, UWS had the world’s first successful birth of a pink dolphin in a marine park.

BUNDLE OF JOY

The marine mammal trainers who had watched over Pann round-the-clock before she gave birth were exhilarated to see her baby.

Ms Keiko Watanabe, who witnessed the birth, related that Pann had swam “really close” to them one day while they were conducting an interactive session with the other dolphins, and then they saw the tip of the baby dolphin’s tail sticking out.

About 20 minutes later, the mother dolphin’s water bag burst and the baby was born.

“The baby dolphin was very strong and surfaced on its own to take its first breath. It did not need any help from us or its mother dolphin and dolphin ‘aunts’,” said Ms Watanabe.

She also described the baby dolphin as “bright and inquisitive, high-spirited and adventurous”.

PRE-DELIVERY CARE

During Pann’s 12-month pregnancy, a marine mammal veterinarian visited her at least once a week to check on her.

The mother dolphin was trained to lay flat, poolside, so that the vet could conduct ultrasound tests to detect her heart beat and blood flow, and to ensure that the foetus was active and developing well.

However, there was no special treatment or treats during Pann’s pregnancy, said her ‘gynaecologist’, Dr Frederic Chua.

“We have to watch the hormones and the ultrasounds, and behaviour is important. We don’t want her to get too fat, as obesity will compromise the foetal health as well. We have to keep her swimming, strengthening her abdominal muscles so that she has the strength to push when the time comes,” he explained.

From Friday (Nov 28) onwards, the team of trainers will be sharing with the public their experience in caring for the pair of dolphins at the Meet-the-Mother-Dolphin-and-Calf session at UWS. The sessions will run until Jan 1 next year. CHANNEL NEWSASIA