Imagine you’re enlisted in the U.S. Navy and stationed at a classified naval base.
You are patrolling the docks, when suddenly you see something jump out of the water.
You can’t quite make out what the animal is, but it looked like a big fish.
You squint through the sunlight reflecting off the water.
All of a sudden an enemy diver is thrown out of the water and onto the dock.
You look wide eyed and confused at the enemy laying at your feet.
“How did he get here?”
you wonder.
Then you peer over the edge of the dock and see a dolphin swimming around in the water.
Your commanding officer comes out from the base smiling and stands next to you.
“I’d like to introduce you to your new partner,” he says pointing to the dolphin.
“My new partner?” you say a little shocked.
Your C.O. informs you that your new assignment is to protect the Naval base at all costs.
The only possible way to do this is to work closely with your new dolphin partner.
The dolphin makes a series of clicking noises and does a backflip.
Your commanding officer puts his hand on your shoulder and says “I think he likes you.”
“This is going to be interesting,” you respond.
“What do I call him?”
The C.O. looks at you straight in the eyes and with a smirk says: “The dolphin’s
call sign is Big Tuna.”
You and Big Tuna go through training together.The dolphin receives meals of fresh herring and
mackerel several times a day.
You are stuck with standard issue rations.
Sometimes you think Big Tuna eats better than you, but if you try to steal his fish he sprays
you with water and creates sounds very similar to laughter.
He is too smart for his own good, but you guys bond and form a close relationship.
You teach Big Tuna different commands and signals using whistles and hand gestures.
His dolphin ears are fine tuned to hear and locate sounds underwater, so communication
is almost always possible no matter how deep he goes.
Through positive reinforcement and fishy rewards your dolphin partner learns enough commands
to practically have a full blown conversation.
He always knows exactly what to do on a mission.
Big Tuna and you become inseparable.
You are the most valuable assets of the secret Naval base.
You have been training hard and waiting to be assigned your first off base mission.
Big Tuna has been trained well and his echolocation makes him a vital asset to the team.
He can locate objects underwater with ease and can identify all types of objects.
He can even distinguish between different types of metal.
Then it happens.
You and Big Tuna receive your first assignment.
The Navy suspects that there are underwater mines just outside of the base perimeter.
It is your responsibility to help Big Tuna locate and deactivate the underwater mines.
Marine biologists that work closely with the Navy have reported that dolphins are much
more effective at locating mines than any machine.
They can use their echolocation to locate and identify mines without ever coming into
contact with them.
Your squad takes a boat to the suspected mine location.
Big Tuna swims alongside the vessel until you reach the danger zone.
You give Big Tuna the signal to locate a metal spherical object.
He dives underwater and uses his echolocation to pinpoint his target.
A few minutes go by and your partner resurfaces.
He makes clicking noises signaling he has located a mine.
“Good job Big Tuna!” you say.
You hand him a small explosive to attach to the mine.
He swims to the target with the disarmament explosive in his mouth.
Then carefully your dolphin partner attaches the explosive to the mine.
Big Tuna swims back up to the boat.
You signal him to jump in.
After he is secured in the boat you zoom away.
Once at a safe distance you detonate the small explosive thus neutralizing the mine.
Mission accomplished.
You get a couple days R and R with Big Tuna, but then the big brass send orders down the
pipeline.
Your next mission is salvage and recovery of a lost experimental submersible.
The Navy has lost contact with the prototype about twenty-five klicks from the base.
You learnt in basic training that a klick is one kilometer.
Not too far, but far enough that Big Tuna will have to ride along in the boat with you,
until you reach the last known location of the lost submersible.
You load Big Tuna into the salt water filled tank on the boat.
He gets secured into a harness to ensure he is comfortable and that any jolting of the
boat doesn’t cause him to crash into the sides of the tank.
You reach the targeted location.
Your dolphin partner is released into the open waters of the ocean.
Big Tuna looks at you for instructions.
You give the commands for search and rescue using hand gestures.
The dolphin shakes his head up and down to show he understands and then dives.
After eight minutes you get a little worried that Big Tuna hasn’t resurfaced yet.
Dolphins on average can only hold their breath for ten minutes.
But, that's pushing it.
Then your partner pops his head out of the water.
He clicks and jumps signaling that he has located the lost submersible and to follow
him.
You steer the boat towards where Big Tuna is headed.
You reach the location and attach a harness with a camera mounted to it onto your partner.
Big Tuna dives down into the murky depths.
You watch the camera feed on the monitors aboard the boat.
The picture fades, but the light on the camera eventually kicks in.
When the image focuses you can see the lost submersible on the screen.
Big Tuna has done it again.
The submersible is recovered and you return to base for a cold beer and some fresh sushi.
The beer is for you the sushi is for the dolphin.
Your missions have been so successful with your partner that you are both promoted.
You have made it to the big leagues.
You now lead the team responsible for patrolling and defending the harbor from enemy spies
and saboteurs.
You knew that your missions were going well, but not this well!
You have heard of the elite teams of dolphins who protect Naval installations along the
coast of California, but those are the best of the best.
You can’t believe you and Big Tuna have accomplished so much in such a short time.
You remember hearing a story from a friend in San Diego about a training exercise that
pitted a Navy SEAL against one of the trained dolphins.
The soldier was tasked with attempting to infiltrate a harbor with a fake mine.
The elite soldier was the best the Navy had to offer.
Everyone was sure he would sneak by the dolphin.
But on all five attempts to infiltrate the harbor and plant the fake mine the dolphin
stopped him.
SEALs are no match for dolphins.
The base you are protecting is a big deal.
It is a matter of national security that no enemies gain access to its secrets.
You and Big Tuna are vigilant, but you know an attempt to infiltrate the base is imminent.
The first time you catch someone trying to gain access to the base you handle it in a
discreet manner.
Big Tuna has sighted the target, but does not engage.
Instead he keeps his distance, but tracks the enemy.
The diver swims closer to the base.
That is when the dolphin signals it's time for action.
He heads back to the boat where you have been waiting, and informs you through his clicks
and body movements it is time to attack.
Big Tuna leads the armed patrol boat to the enemy’s location.
Once given the signal the dolphin swims away to safety.
The Navy boat drops depth charges and grenades into the waters surrounding the spy.
Explosions erupt from the depths and water sprays into the air.
After the waters settle, Big Tuna is sent back in for reconnaissance.
He resurfaces and gives you the signal.
Target destroyed.
It wasn’t long before the enemy attempts to infiltrate the harbor of the top secret
base again.
This time you and your dolphin compatriot want to send a clear message.
No one messes with your base.
The enemy has sent a squad of three highly skilled divers to try and sneak into the base.
Big Tuna quickly identifies all of the incoming targets with his echolocation.
The clicks and high pitched noises travel through the water at the speed of sound.
When they come in contact with the enemy divers, the sound waves bounce back and return to
the dolphin’s highly sensitive ears.
Using echolocation allows Big Tuna to identify the exact size, shape, and distance of the
enemy divers.
Your dolphin partner signals that there are enemies in the vicinity.
You prepare to engage, but before you can move, Big Tuna signals that he will handle
this one on his own.
You are hesitant, but trust your partner.
You have heard accounts of dolphins immobilizing divers in training missions using their rostrum,
sometimes called a nose or snout.
Big Tuna dives deep and swims toward his targets.
The unknowing enemies are taken by surprise.
The dolphin rams his rostrum into the first diver’s abdomen.
The breath is knocked out of him and he floats to the surface.
You intercept the enemy with your boat and lock him up.
Big Tuna circles back and targets the respirator on the second diver.
He uses his tail to knock the diver off balance and then grabs the tube that connects the
breathing apparatus to the air tank.
He pulls the device apart.
The second enemy diver frantically swims to the surface where you are waiting for him.
His head pops out of the water and he gasps for air.
When he calms down you capture him and lock him up with his comrade.
Two down, one to go.
Big Tuna circles around for the final target.
He grabs the final enemy diver by the dive fin and carries him through the water.
He pulls the enemy diver to the surface right in front of your boat.
You signal for Big Tuna to let go.
He follows your orders immediately and the enemy is hoisted onto the boat with the other
conspirators.
All enemies are brought back to base for interrogation.
Your team has been so successful that you are given a special mission.
You are to escort a special envoy on a diplomatic mission.
A lot of enemy powers want to see the mission fail, so it is imperative that the boat is
well protected.
Big Tuna swims alongside the boat making sure that the surrounding area is clear of enemies.
The camera mounted on his vest relays video to the onboard command center.
While aboard the envoy, your commanding officer informs you that this isn’t the first time
dolphins have escorted ships through dangerous waters.
Dolphins were used during the Tanker War in the Iran-Iraq war where oil tankers were targeted
by enemy opposition.
Dolphins were deployed during the war to protect ships in harbors and along dangerous routes.
Dolphins have traveled the world to ensure the safety of military assets.
Dolphins like Big Tuna even helped provide security for the Republican National Convention
in 1996.
The convention took place at the San Diego Convention center right on the Pacific Ocean.
These precautions were in response to the bombing at the summer Olympics in Atlanta
in 1996.
The U.S. military was leaving nothing to chance and the Navy dolphins were the best ocean
security guards possible.
There have been rumors floating around among your friends that dolphins are dangerous and
used to kill divers who wander too close to a Naval base.
You explain that this is all simply not true.
“But what about the dolphins with lasers attached to their heads?” a friend asks.
You reassure them that there has never been any laser death rays attached to dolphins.
“How about the accounts of nuclear devices being attached to dolphins and then detonated
when they reached their target?” asks another friend.
Again there is no evidence for this claim.
You ask the friend, “wouldn’t you have heard about the nuclear explosion if that
were the case?
“Well surely you have heard the reports of dolphins being outfitted with compressed
gas needles that they jam into an enemy soldier’s body.
This would create an air bubble in the victim's veins or arteries that would be carried to
vital organs and would kill the diver almost immediately.”
You tell this person that there is no evidence that dolphins were ever fitted with such a
device, nor would they need to be when they could just drag the enemy diver to the surface
to be captured and questioned by the U.S. Navy.
You and Big Tuna carry out many missions during your time together.
You have disarmed underwater mines, located and rescued lost equipment, protected your
base from enemy divers, and escorted ships through dangerous waters.
Your career together has been successful and rewarding.
It’s no wonder that once the Navy started using dolphins in the 1960’s they never
stopped.
Dolphins are intelligent, extremely fast, and can use their echolocation to identify
objects from great distances with precision.
They also form bonds with their trainers, which is why when you and Big Tuna retired,
you bought a place on the coast of Florida, where you and your partner can spend your
days relaxing and swimming around the warm Atlantic waters.
How cool would it be to have a dolphin as a partner?
What do you think is most impressive about the military dolphin’s capabilities?
Let us know in the comments!