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Another "what were these folks thinking... [merged]

lynne

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Kapolei

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According to the reports, before they are disturbed, they could be in a half asleep state while swimming. This is one of the reasons they should be left alone.

That being said, I am sure those in the pod are thinking that the land mammals look completely ridiculous in the water with their slow moving appendages that can easily and quickly be removed by predator sharks. Maybe the pod could trick these mammals into following them to a predator friend.

The thing interesting about the video is you can see a smaller group break off from the pod to divide the mammals following them. Also they are just swimming fast enough to stay out of reach. Yet, never going to hyper speed. They are totally messing with the land mammals. The land mammals have no idea how stupid they are.
 
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dioxide45

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"During a routine patrol in the South Kona District, the officers took photographs and drone video showing the large group of swimmers appearing to be aggressively pursuing, corralling and harassing the pod."

Viewing the video myself, that seems like a bit of a stretch. I kind of agree with one of the comments though I am not the one levying the fines. "Are they harassing the dolphins or just trying to swim near them and observe? At the end of the video, all the swimmers paused and observed."
 

1Melanie

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Enjoy and respect the environment

 

daventrina

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"During a routine patrol in the South Kona District, the officers took photographs and drone video showing the large group of swimmers appearing to be aggressively pursuing, corralling and harassing the pod."

Viewing the video myself, that seems like a bit of a stretch. I kind of agree with one of the comments though I am not the one levying the fines. "Are they harassing the dolphins or just trying to swim near them and observe? At the end of the video, all the swimmers paused and observed."
Without any doubt ... the video clearly;y shows the group chasing the dolphins which is a violation of both state and federal law
 

dioxide45

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Without any doubt ... the video clearly;y shows the group chasing the dolphins which is a violation of both state and federal law
I simply don't see how it is "without any doubt". The swimmers aren't aggressive. They didn't gain ground on them, they didn't try to touch them. I see it as more of a curiosity thing. It would be cool to see dolphins in the water. We will have to agree to disagree. If the dolphins felt threatened, they would have been gone in a flash.
 

Kapolei

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I simply don't see how it is "without any doubt". The swimmers aren't aggressive. They didn't gain ground on them, they didn't try to touch them. I see it as more of a curiosity thing. It would be cool to see dolphins in the water. We will have to agree to disagree. If the dolphins felt threatened, they would have been gone in a flash.
The article explains how the pod can be in a half awake state. In the video, they are clearly wide awake. But we don’t know what their state was before all the people showed up. We aren’t talking about a couple of people diving. This is a tourist mob scene that probably is seen there on a repeated basis.
 

daventrina

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I simply don't see how it is "without any doubt". The swimmers aren't aggressive. They didn't gain ground on them, they didn't try to touch them. I see it as more of a curiosity thing. It would be cool to see dolphins in the water. We will have to agree to disagree. If the dolphins felt threatened, they would have been gone in a flash.
They are swimming after the dolphins. They clearly DID NOT take ANY immediate steps to move AWAY from them. - a clear violation of both state and federal law.

You come here and get caught pulling a stunt like that and the Judge will explain it to you. I don't expect that the Judge would be overly concerned if you disagree.

"On September 28, 2021, NOAA Fisheries finalized a rule authorized under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. It prohibits swimming with, approaching, or remaining within 50 yards of a Hawaiian spinner dolphin. The rule applies to any vessel, person, or object (including all boats, canoes, stand-up paddleboards, drones, or any other means) that is within 2 nautical miles from shore in the main Hawaiian Islands and in designated waters bounded by the islands of Lāna‘i, Maui, and Kahoʻolawe. The rule also prohibits approach by “interception” or placing a vessel, person, or other object in the path of a spinner dolphin so that the dolphin approaches within 50 yards of the vessel, person, or object.


There are eight exceptions to the prohibitions listed in this regulation, summarized below:

  1. People who inadvertently come within 50 yards of a Hawaiian spinner dolphin or are approached by a spinner dolphin, provided they make no effort to engage or pursue the animal and take immediate steps to move away from it.
  2. ......."

 

ScoopKona

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You come here and get caught pulling a stunt like that and the Judge will explain it to you. I don't expect that the Judge would be overly concerned if you disagree.

Answering the original question, "What were they thinking," I doubt seriously there was much thinking happening at all. In fact, the straightest line on the Big Island is an electroencephalogram of the average tourist.

They don't actually say, "Let's douse ourselves with reef-poisoning sunscreen, and then go harass wild animals." They do it without thinking. It would take a thimbleful of thoughtfulness and/or empathy to think about the island and their place on it.

These are the same people who snivel about impact fees.
 
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