During the summer season, as more people flock to beaches and the waters become warmer, there tends to be a rise in conflicts between sharks and humans. Unfortunately, some of these encounters can be deadly. However, in a heartwarming incident in New Zealand, a group of swimmers were enjoying the water when they were suddenly surrounded by a pod of dolphins.
Initially, the swimmers were thrilled to see the dolphins up close, but one of them soon noticed something that didn’t quite fit in – it wasn’t a dolphin at all! What happened next is a truly incredible story of how these dolphins came to the rescue and saved the group of swimmers from a potentially fatal attack by a great white shark.
In Ocean Beach, off the coast of New Zealand’s North Island, a man named Rob Howe was swimming with his teenage daughter and two of her friends. As they were enjoying their time in the water, they noticed a few dolphins swimming nearby.
Soon, more dolphins joined in and appeared to be herding them. At first, the swimmers were delighted to be so close to the playful bottlenose dolphins, but they soon realized that something was amiss. When Howe tried to swim away from the group, two larger dolphins approached him and seemed to guide him back to the group, almost as if they were trying to prevent him from leaving.
It was then that Howe spotted something in the distance that wasn’t a dolphin at all – it was a great white shark! What happened next is a remarkable story of how the dolphins came to the rescue and saved the group from a potentially fatal attack.
They swam around the swimmers for a remarkable 40 minutes, slapping their tails on the water to divert the attention of the great white shark and keep the people out of harm’s way. Despite the presence of the shark, the dolphins never wavered in their efforts to protect the group.
Eventually, the shark swam away without attacking either the dolphins or the swimmers. With the help of the dolphins, the group was able to swim back to the shore safely, covering a distance of 100 meters. It’s an incredible story of how these intelligent and compassionate creatures came to the rescue and saved the day!
Despite the media attention that shark attacks receive, they are actually extremely rare. The International Shark Attack File, which provides reliable data on shark attacks and fatalities worldwide, recorded 73 unprovoked shark bites in 2021, resulting in 11 fatalities, 9 of which were unprovoked. The US had the highest number of unprovoked bites with 47, while New Zealand recorded 3 unprovoked bites and 1 fatality.
