Sampali Returns to the Sea After Dolphin Show, Gives Birth to Third Offspring

2013 Wild Release
Estimated Third Birth Last August-September

It has been confirmed that Sampil, a southern bottlenose dolphin who returned to the sea in 2013 after performing dolphin shows, has given birth to her third calf. This is the first confirmed case of a dolphin that was managed in an aquarium successfully reproducing for the third time in the wild after being released.

The Marine Animal Ecology Conservation Research Center (MARC) recently announced through its official social media channels that "from August 26 to September 2, a baby dolphin was observed swimming alongside Sampil," confirming that the Jeju southern bottlenose dolphin 'Sampil' has given birth to her third calf.

The third offspring of Sampali swimming [Photo by Marine Animal Ecology Conservation Institute (MARC) Instagram capture]

MARC stated, "After verifying the proportion of the 'mother-calf swimming posture,' where the mother dolphin swims with the calf closely attached to her body, we are confident that the calf belongs to Sampil." The 'mother-calf swimming posture' is a typical dolphin behavior in which the mother dolphin swims with the calf pressed tightly against her back, protecting the calf and reducing the effort the calf needs to swim against the current.

Sampil was illegally captured in 2010 in a fishing net set by fishermen off the coast of Jeju and was sold to a company in Seogwipo City, where she performed dolphin shows for three years. Later, after a court ruling confiscated the illegally captured dolphins, she was released back into the Jeju sea in 2013 along with Jedori and Chunsam, who were at Seoul Grand Park.

At that time, Sampil made headlines by escaping through a torn net in the pen one month before her final release during wild adaptation training and joining a wild pod. It has since been confirmed that she gave birth twice, in 2016 and 2019.

Sampil’s third calf was first spotted in footage filmed on September 13 by director Lee Jung-jun of 'Dolphin Man,' who produces marine documentaries. Until August, Sampil was only seen with her second calf born in 2019, so MARC began tracking to confirm the possibility of a third birth based on this footage. According to MARC, Sampil’s third calf is estimated to have been born between late August and mid-September.

MARC said, "Sampil is still with her calf born in 2019, and now she has a third calf with her. We hope the newborn calf grows up safely and healthily."

[Photo by Marine Animal Ecology Conservation Institute (Mark? MARC) Instagram capture]

The southern bottlenose dolphin is a representative marine protected species that inhabits only the coastal waters of Jeju in South Korea. However, these dolphins were captured and used in dolphin shows.

Starting with three dolphins in 2013, a total of eight aquarium dolphins have been released back into the wild so far. Geumdeungi (released in 2017), Daepo (released in 2017), and Bibong (released in 2022), who had long exhibition periods, have not been confirmed alive or dead after their release. Three female dolphins (Chunsam, Sampil, and Boksuni) have each successfully given birth 1 to 3 times after release, resulting in a total of six calves.

Currently, the southern bottlenose dolphins inhabiting only the coastal waters of Jeju are estimated to number around 120.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.