Edgewater has welcomed its newest residents with several sightings of a pod of five dolphins in Edgewater Lake over recent months.
Edgewater Project Director, Jill Lim, said the bottlenose dolphins, including four adults and one calf, had been spotted doing casual laps of the lake.
“It’s incredible to see dolphins this far up the Maribyrnong River,” said Jill. “Edgewater residents were thrilled by the visit and had one of the best outlooks as the dolphins swam around the Edgewater Lake for quite some time.”
Jeff Weir, Executive Director of the Dolphin Research Institute said an increasing number of sightings were being reported in the Maribyrnong River over recent years.
“More and more sightings are occurring in the Maribyrnong River,” he said. “We’ve seen major improvements in the water quality of the river over recent years, which has resulted in an increase in the supply of local fish. This has attracted the dolphins to venture further up the river to feed.”
Mr Weir said it was very important that people demonstrate commonsense and respect when they see the dolphins.
“There are strong wildlife protection rules and penalties to protect dolphins. People should not deliberately approach them and should maintain a distance of at least 30 metres.”
Mr Weir said people interested in the dolphins could become more involved through the Institute’s Adopt-a-dolphin program, which supports marine research, education and conservation programs.
Edgewater residents are encouraged to report any dolphin sightings to the Dolphin Research Institute on 1300 130 949 or visit www.dolphinresearch.org.au
Images provided courtesy of The Herald and Weekly Times Photographic Collection.
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