For many years Marine Connection has been monitoring the phenomenon of solitary cetaceans and since November 2019 we have been networking with colleagues in the Svendborg area of Denmark, with regards to a solitary male bottlenose dolphin which was given the name Delle.
We have just received the incredible news that Delle has been identified as one of the Scottish Moray Firth dolphin population and is known to scientists at University of Aberdeen’s Cromarty Field Station as Yoda, approx. 13 years old. His mother is called Chewbacca, his siblings are Kenobi (female) and Skywalker (male).
Will this young male return to his home ground? Many of the Moray dolphins are certainly moving out of their normal range, one female from the same population, known as Moonlight is currently in the Isle of Man (IOM), situated in the Irish Sea between England and Ireland. Moonlight was first sighted last summer and in the Autumn gave birth to a calf and both continue to make the IOM home.
It will be most interesting to watch Delle’s/Yoda’s movements over the next few months. We will continue monitoring his movements closely and provide updates as further reports are received.
