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Passing the Puff…Er Fish

posted by Chris Valentine

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

Dolphins share many human traits but not all of them are good. They display signs of jealousy, bravery and humor and can also get “high” by sharing the toxins emanating from the puffer fish. The dolphins were captured on film passing the toxic puffer fish with their counterparts.  Toxins were released from the puffer fish when they nudged it with their snouts and this helped them to get into a trance.

The film depicts the dolphins floating mesmerized under the surface of the water. The cameras captured the dolphins gently passing the puffer to each other for nearly half an hour instead of tearing them apart like they did their prey. Scientists were fascinated at this wealth of information that was available when these scenes were filmed for a TV series. Experts realize that the toxins that are released by the puffer fish when they are frightened and wish to defend themselves were being absorbed by the dolphins.

Spy in the Pod is an up and coming BBCI show on Dolphins that was filmed by John Dower. He has enabled people to view wildlife, including penguin colonies by using hidden cameras. Dower did this by designing and disguising the underwater cameras to resemble tuna, squid and dolphins!

Rob Pilley, zoologist was amazed at the way the dolphins gently handled the puffers. This series producer marveled at the way they handled the puffer fish, using their snouts to nudge them and to enjoy the toxins released.  They gingerly passed the puffer fish to their fellow dolphins. They enjoyed the encounter and wished to get the most of the situation by passing it to other dolphins. They experienced a high when they became mesmerizes and floated around in a trance-like state.

Spy in the Huddle was another documentary that was produced by Mr Downer. He disguised the cameras as sea creatures to allow viewers to get very close when watching their choice of species. These cams have been fitted with HD cameras. Life under the sea has now been captured with the Tunacam, Dolphincam, Squidcam and Turtlecam.

Viewers now enjoy watching a calf learn to leap and catch fish by the mother or take central position with numerous dolphins surrounding them at any given time.

David Tennant is the narrator of the program that was filmed over 900 hours. This footage has been collected from all over the world including South Africa, Australia, Argentina, America and Costa Rica. The captivating footage of the dolphins with the puffer fish was filmed close to the Mozambique waters.

Horses are attracted to locoweed which is a legume that has the effect nicotine has on humans. They also lick frogs to get a “high.” Locoweed can be addictive and prove fatal. Since this plant remains green even in winter, horses consume the same not only because of its availability but because they enjoy the effects. Meercats eat rotten apples that have fallen from trees in autumn, which essentially make them drunk. Inebriated, they display all the common signs of drunkenness seen in humans, such as inability to walk and lack of co-ordination, to aggression, tiredness and have appeared to sing and dance! Reindeer are also among the animals who like to get high. In real Grimm’s Brother Fashion, they eat magic mushrooms, those red capped ones with the white spots that fairytales tell us cause hallucinations. They seek out the shrooms during dreary winter days and are believed to have taken up the pastime as a form of entertainment. So it seems we aren’t all that different from animals after all!

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