Swimming with Dolphins in Mauritius

For as long as I can remember I've always been fascinated by dolphins. The way the glide through the water always made them seem so care free, graceful and mysterious. I've always wanted to swim with dolphins and it's been on the top of my bucket list forever. So when I was finally faced with the opportunity, I was unbelievably excited! But, being the Dolphin Defender I am, I was also very concerned for the dolphins' safety and happiness.

There are many options available for booking a dolphin watching or swimming trip in Mauritius. The first question you have to ask yourself, is "Do I want to actually get in the water with the dolphins?" If the answer's, "Yes, of course" then you'll want a dolphin swim trip, and if the answer's "No, that's not really my thing" then you're probably better off just looking for a dolphin watching trip. Then there's several ways to book, many of the large tour operators offer dolphin trips. These can be either private trips, or group trips. Full day trips, or early morning trips. What's right for you is your decision. We did a morning trip as we were all inclusive in our hotel anyway, so there was not much point paying the extra for lunch. Other than tour operators, there are also the people walking up and down the beach offering dolphin trips. There were three different people on our beach from different companies offering different sized boats and tour lengths, for different prices. The big question for me however was not, which company offers the best value for money, but rather which company cares most about the protection of animals?

Having quizzed all the boat operators on how they do their part to keep the animals protected and asked to see their official permits, we picked a company that offered both value for money and respect for the dolphins. And so, after a (very) early start, we boarded the boat, snorkels and masks in hand, ready for the experience of a lifetime. As we sped along the water, our two young tour guides told us how they go out early every morning to find the dolphins so they know where to take the tourists. After a very fun 15 minute ride we spotted the first dark fin rise out of the water. As a dozen others followed I began to get really excited. This is what I've been waiting for! I pulled on my fins and mask and got ready to dive into the water. I was the first one of my family to jump in and loved being surrounded by these wonderful creatures jumping and gliding through the water. I was completely in awe of how close they were and floated there for as long as possible listening to their echo-locating. Until they disappeared. Although dolphins need to come above the water for air, they are incredibly fast, swimming normally between 3-7 miles per hour and reaching up to 20 when they put in effort. So I popped back up only to find myself surrounded by boats. "Get in! Get in!" our tour guides shouted as I clambered back aboard. As soon as both feet hit the deck we were off, chasing behind the dolphins to catch up with them. And this is the bit I struggled with. Having spent time with the UK's "Sea Watch Foundation" a couple of summers ago, I learnt about British dolphin protection laws. One of which is that boats must stay 100m away from dolphins at all times, unless approached. If this is the case, boats may interact with the dolphins, but must switch engines into neutral. So chasing the dolphins seemed completely wrong. Despite this, the thrill of the chase got to me, and I too was on the look out for the dolphins, waiting for the next opportunity to jump into the water to join my favourite animals. I knew very well, that chasing the dolphins was wrong, and yet I made the active decision to go along with it. Sure, I could tell our tour guides to stop chasing the dolphins and turn the engines off, but if we did that, we'd be sitting out in the middle of the ocean whilst the surrounding boats drove them away. And I wasn't prepared to give up this opportunity. And here's the problem.

Dolphins are naturally playful creatures, and they do love interacting with humans, but at the same time, they're wild animals and swimming with them can be incredibly dangerous to both swimmer and dolphin. Not only does swimming with dolphins disrupt natural feeding patterns and other behaviours, dolphins can also be injured by boat propellors. I know this, and yet I still chose to swim with them. And this is a massive issue. I love dolphins, and as passionate as I am about protecting them, I've also always wanted to swim and interact with them. And so, I find myself presented with a question. "Is there any way to make swimming with dolphins safe for both swimmer and dolphin?"

The "Mauritius Marine Conservation Society" recently released a booklet entitled "A guide to the whales and dolphins of Mauritius" which is available to both Tourists and Tour Operators with information about the animals, their habitats and the importance of protecting them. In 2012 the Tourism Authority released a series of regulations regarding Dolphin and Whale watching and swimming. In these it is stated that every person offering boat trips must have a license with regards to the activity. The pleasure craft used must also have a propeller guard approved by the authority and a skipper with a certificate. These certificates cannot be obtained without a test from the authority which will ensure that applicants have "sound knowledge" of whales and dolphins as well as how to operate a boat safely around them. You have every right to ask for this license at any time. A license costs 250 rupees which is about £5...These regulations state that skippers are allowed to approach dolphins from the side, providing they "maintain the pleasure craft on the side of the dolphin or whale and follow a parallel course to the dolphin or whale, operate the pleasure craft at no-wake speed where he is in the regulated zone, enter and leave the regulated zone at no-wake speed, keep the engine of the pleasure craft on neutral gear when it is at standstill, maintain constant speed and direction where dolphins are bow-riding; and not drive through or amidst a pod" Although it does state that "circling" a dolphin or whale is prohibited, there is nothing against following them. Dolphins must be visited between 6am and noon and swimming may only take place before 9am. Swimmers must receive a safety briefing before entering the water, and only 3 swimmers from the same boat are allowed in the water at any given time and a life saver must always be present in the water. Whilst I must admit that many of these rules were abided by throughout my dolphin swim experience, this rule was definitely broken. Whilst there were only 3 swimmers from our family in the water, the tour guide wasn't always with us and we definitely didn't receive a safety briefing. Many other boats had more than 3 swimmers in the water. The dolphins are not the only risk to swimmers in the water, whilst there are no dangerous sea creatures in Mauritius, I was most scared by the boats. When underwater I was unable to see boats above me, and I was constantly worried I would be hit. With boats rushing around after the dolphins, would a skipper be able to see one tiny snorkeler in the water in front of them from the back of the boat? So this presents another issue, why aren't the rules being enforced? I guess the answer to that question is the same answer to why some of our English rules and regulations aren't enforced, because there's not enough money and manpower to do so.

It is undoubtable that the Mauritian regulations are no where near as strict as the British ones. The problem with making the regulations stricter is that Mauritius relies on Tourism to support its economy. Other than its luxury hotels and resorts, one of its main attractions is its marine life and being able to swim with dolphins. If the Tourism Authority made the regulations stricter, therefore limiting the number of visitors allowed on dolphin swims or not allowing them full stop, this could in turn severely damage the industry and therefore the economy.

So the question remains, is there anyway to make dolphin swims safe and enjoyable for both swimmer and dolphin?

There probably isn't really a simple answer to this question, but many other countries do offer wild dolphin encounters that are better for dolphins. These swims involve tour operators taking tourists out, but then leaving them to swim with dolphins in a much more natural way. The tourists stay off the boat and the dolphins can chose to stay and play, or leave. I think this provides a much better experience to both dolphin and tourist. But I have no doubt that it would limit the amount of tourists, tour operators are able to take out and therefore the amount of money they're able to make. Whether this option for dolphins swims will be available for tourists in Mauritius is something only time will tell, but I'd really like to think it's possible.

Dolphins are incredibly magical, intelligent animals and I'd love to think that there's a way for us to interact and learn from them whilst still keeping them safe and happy.

Whether this way is to ban dolphin swims all together is a completely different matter.

You can read the full Tourism Authority (Dolphin and Whale Watching) Regulations here.

Check out the Mauritius Marine Conservation Society webpage here.

To read the UK's boat operating laws click here.

For more information of the risks swimming with dolphins can bring to animals and swimmers, click here.