Drew’s Daily Deliberations

I like dolphins, but this is a bit too close for even my liking…

WELLINGTON - A New Zealand woman was seriously injured after a dolphin jumped into her boat in what a marine specialist said may have been a world-first occurrence.

The 27-year-old was hit by the leaping dolphin in the Bay of Plenty and was rushed by helicopter to Auckland Hospital and admitted to the intensive care unit.

“I’ve been studying dolphins for 40 years and this is the first time I’ve heard of a dolphin jumping into a boat,” expert Alan Baker told New Zealand radio today.

A spokesman for the Auckland rescue helicopter said the woman was sitting in the bow of a small pleasure craft on Tuesday afternoon when it appeared the dolphin miscalculated its leap.

“It jumped up out of the water and hit the woman, giving her a number of injuries,” the spokesman said.

It appeared the dolphin leaped a considerable distance and did not see the boat, he said.

The dolphin swam away apparently unharmed. Bottlenose dolphins grow to more than four metres.

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