Okay, here's another reason why I decided to add a Blogger site to this Florida Dolphins project - I need to stop writing these super long things on Tumblr!
In Placida Harbor and northwest Gasparilla Sound, the tides are usually very minimal. Only once have I personally seen an extremely high tide that flooded yards and another tide so low that small boats were left hanging from their docks in the harbor. However, when the tide goes out, water from Placida Harbor, the north side of Gasparilla Sound, Catfish Creek, Coral Creek, Whidden Creek, and likely some water from the Cape Haze Aquatic Preserve (I’m assuming those islands around the south side of Bull Bay and Turtle Bay probably block some of the tidal flow from exiting Boca Grande Pass, and instead direct it towards Placida) comes flowing through Gasparilla Pass, which is only about 2,000 feet wide. In the pass, a strong current can flow, and you can easily see the water racing by at the surface. However, I didn’t notice just how strong this current sometimes is until one evening in April of 2016.
We were visiting Placida for a few days, and decided to take a walk on the southwestern side of Little Gasparilla Island, to watch the sun set. We walked down to the south point of the island, and noticed that the outgoing tide was ripping through Gasparilla Pass. It was then that I spotted two dolphins - an adult and a young juvenile, not far off of the beach. Of course, I ran across the sand, to get a better angle for taking photos. Light was quickly fading, and all I had back then was one of those “everything’s automatic” point-and-shoot cameras, but I was going to try taking some photographs for identification. The adult could not be identified, but the calf appeared to be PU48 “Zephyr.”
The dolphins were mulling about just outside of the current’s flow, using the south point of Little Gasparilla Island as a “back-eddy.” In case you’re not picturing this, check out this Google Maps image. Now picture an outgoing tide flowing through Gasparilla Pass into the open Gulf of Mexico. Are you seeing how the tip of Little Gasparilla would create a still spot on its west side? This is where the dolphins were hanging out.
Zephyr near the shore, waiting for the tide to turn
It was quite apparent that the dolphins wanted to get back into the harbor. Night was falling, and the harbor would probably be much safer than the open gulf, especially for young Zephyr. The adult attempted to swim against the current several times. Once, he/she entered the flow, and you could see him/her pushing hard, swimming strong against the current, but apparently, he/she was not strong enough. The adult stopped swimming, and the current swept him/her away as if she were not a 300-400 pound creature, but a leaf drifting down a brook.
If the adult could not make it through, then very likely Zephyr could not either. Once, it appeared (though I’m not completely sure if this was exactly what was happening) as though the adult tried to push little Zephyr against the flow, but failed.
Though I have no way to prove this, I kind of got the feeling that the adult was a little more nervous and anxious to get back in the harbor, while Zephyr was more careless, and appeared to have little concern. Zephyr swam up to the beach, and when he was in roughly knee-deep water, he/she began to swim in a fast circle, chasing little fish. All the while, the adult stayed further out, almost seeming to constantly be inspecting the current, looking for a way through. It would be a while before the tide would die down, and the dolphins could swim through.
Thankfully, Zephyr (and I’m assuming the adult, too) endured the wait and made it back to safety. Zephyr has been spotted many times since then, and is quickly growing up.
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