QUANTITATIVE BEHAVIORAL-STUDY OF BOTTLE-NOSED DOLPHINS IN SWIM-WITH-DOLPHIN PROGRAMS IN THE UNITED-STATES

The behavior of dolphins in four Swim-With-Dolphin programs was compar ed by type of Swim encounter, defined by the presence (''Controlled'') or absence (''Not-Controlled'') of explicit trainer regulation of int eractions between dolphins and human swimmers. Dolphin-swimmer interac tions involving aggressive, submissive, or sexual behavior were design ated as ''high-risk'' in the Swim context; sexual behavior was include d as high-risk based on analyses that demonstrated co-occurrence of se xual and agonistic behaviors. High-risk activity comprised a substanti al proportion of dolphin-swimmer social activity during Not-Controlled Swims, In contrast, high-risk activity rarely occurred during Control led Swims, even though agonistic and sexual behaviors were normal comp onents of the same dolphins' free-time social repertoire. These result s indicated that direct trainer control of dolphin-swimmer interaction s virtually eliminated high-risk activity from the Swim context, and t hereby diminished the potential for dolphin distress, swimmer injury, and rejection of dolphins from Swim programs due to swimmer injury. Th is study illustrates effective use of quantitative behavioral sampling techniques for evaluation of captive management concerns and promotes broader use of these techniques for a better understanding of cetacea n behavior.