A lonely dolphin has been blamed for a spike in attacks on beachgoers in Japan, with experts warning the aquatic animal may be lashing out due to sexual frustration.
More than 45 people have been injured in dolphin attacks in Wasaka Bay, about 200 miles west of Tokyo, since 2022 — and after examining photos and videos of those attacks, one maritime expert told The New York Times the same male Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin could be the culprit behind the terror.
Ryoichi Matsubara, the director of the Echizen Matsushima Aquarium in Fukui, said the same animal is likely also behind 16 attacks off beaches near Mihama and Tsuruga that have taken place since July 21.
The dolphin may be exhibiting mating behavior, Matsushima said, adding that the creature was seen trying “to press his genitals against people” in 2022 and 2023. Even so, Matsushima noted that many of the beachgoers were bitten after approaching or attempting to touch the animal.
Putu Mustika, a marine researcher at James Cook University in Australia, told the newspaper that dolphins can unintentionally harm humans when acting out mating behaviors due to their extraordinary strength.
“Dolphins, when they are mating, can be very wild,” she said, adding that dolphins lunging on top of a human could be a sexual act — and that this particular dolphin was seemingly a “horny, lonely dolphin.”
While the dolphin may have been acting out mating behaviors, Mustika noted it could also just be naturally aggressive and upset by humans repeatedly trying to touch it.
Tadamichi Morisaka, a cetology professor at Japan’s Mie University, agreed with the theory that it was the same aggressive dolphin in all of the recent attacks.
“It is reasonable to assume that it is the same individual, as the wounds on the tail fin are similar to those of the dolphins seen off the coast last year, and it is rare for dolphins, which normally move in groups, to be alone for such a long time,” Morisaka told the BBC.
Another expert, Dr. Simon Allen, a biologist with the Shark Bay Dolphin Research project, said dolphins are incredibly social creatures — which can be expressed through their physical actions.
“Just as in humans and other social animals, hormonal fluctuations, sexual frustration or the desire to dominate might drive the dolphin to injuring the people it interacts with,” Allen told the outlet. “Since they are such powerful animals, this can lead to serious injury in humans.”
