Massive pods delight anglers Saturday morning
NEWPORT — Hundreds of Atlantic white-sided dolphins, known for their friendliness, playfulness and inquisitive nature, gave boaters a rare treat Saturday as they jumped, breached, flirted with and swam alongside those lucky enough to be out on the bay on the crisp fall morning.
The dolphins — some estimates were that there were up to 400 of them — were spotted by boaters between Rose Island and the Jamestown shore around 9 a.m. Soon after, they were spotted near Castle Hill by Capt. Tim Flaherty, who was out fishing with Newport dentist Ernie Violet, local angler Bob Cross and this reporter. They had just set out to fish for tautog off Ocean Drive, and were on the water for barely five minutes before the pod appeared just south of the Dumplings.
Quickly changing course to catch up with them, Capt. Flaherty was soon surrounded by hundreds of the magnificent animals, which surrounded his 32-foot Boston Whaler, Fishfinder1, for 100 yards in every direction. Before long, several other boats arrived and spent more than half an hour playing with them as they headed south out of Newport. Though dolphin sightings off Brenton Reef are not unheard of, the size of Saturday's pod surprised even Capt. Flaherty, a veteran fisherman who’s worked Newport waters for much of his life.
“Nothing's even close to this," he said. “What an amazing sight.”
John Torgan, baykeeper for Save The Bay, said Monday that it appears the animals were Atlantic white-sided dolphins, one of two species (the other being Atlantic spotted dolphins) that are sometimes seen in these parts. The species is mostly confined to the North Atlantic Ocean, with high populations found off Newfoundland and Cape Cod, the triangular area of sea between the United Kingdom, Iceland and Greenland, and the North Sea.
Capt. Flaherty joked later that the dolphins may have been drawn to the boat by the traditional Irish fiddle music, courtesy of western Ireland band Lunasa, that he always plays on the Whaler's stereo while leaving port.
"They love that Irish music," he said.
