Institute of Noetic Sciences Bottomtime II Dolphin Trip, led by Ed Ellsworth and Wink Franklin.

Merlin the dolphin is the first animal to get an iPad, and he’s using it to teach humans about dolphin communication. The researchers have found a way to waterproof the iPad and are now using it to help Merlin — an animal that lives in Puerto Aventuras, Mexico — to make associations between physical objects and digital representations of those objects. The next step will be to layer in verbs and prepositions, making the dream of interactive communication with the brainiest animals on the planet a true possibility. Original Posting

Dolphin died shortly after help arrived

PENSACOLA BEACH, Fla (WALA) – The tide isn’t just washing the oil over the beach. Wildlife is starting to feel the impact as well. An oiled dolphin was found beached on the shore.

“It had beached itself. Its sides were covered in a quarter inch of oil. We started splashing water, scraped oil off it sides and off its eyes,” said Christy Travis, who found the dolphin.

Help came immediately from the Emerald Coast Wildlife Refuge, a non-profit organization, and they were able to stabilize the young female. Sadly, she died shortly after. What’s worse, is she may not be the last.

“It was very sad, it would make you cry. It was crying. There was pod of dolphins just off surf and they were jumping out of water and they were making noise,” said Travis. This is the first report of a dolphin found covered in oil on the Florida coastline.

Florida Governor Charlie Crist walked the beaches Wednesday morning as the oil washed in. “To have something like that on such a beautiful place, breaks your heart.” said Crist. “This is the worst, no question. I haven’t seen it like this anywhere else, never this kind of stuff.”

The beach is no longer packed with tourists, instead BP crews are everywhere. They are working by hand, slowly bagging up everything they can. – Christina Leavenworth

On Good Morning America, correspondent Sam Champion and Philippe Cousteau Jr. explore the toxic plumes of dispersed oil floating beneath the waves in the Gulf of Mexico.

Dolphin saves whales in New Zealand

Scientists say dolphins should be treated as ‘non-human persons’

Dolphins have been declared the world’s second most intelligent creatures after humans, with scientists suggesting they are so bright that they should be treated as “non-human persons”.

Studies into dolphin behaviour have highlighted how similar their communications are to those of humans and that they are brighter than chimpanzees. These have been backed up by anatomical research showing that dolphin brains have many key features associated with high intelligence.

The researchers argue that their work shows it is morally unacceptable to keep such intelligent animals in amusement parks or to kill them for food or by accident when fishing. Some 300,000 whales, dolphins and porpoises die in this way each year.

Excerpt, from Times Online