Bunbury dolphin suffers life changing injury to its dorsal fin after being hit by propeller and hydrofoil

A female dolphin has suffered “life changing” injuries after she was hit by a boat propeller and then a hydrofoil within a week in Bunbury. The Dolphin Discovery Centre has been closely monitoring Tipex — a 30-year-old residential dolphin with children and grandchildren — since January. Dolphin Discovery Centre executive manager Axel Grossmann said after speaking with experts they concluded the first injury to her dorsal fin was most likely caused by a propeller strike. Within a week, Tipex was also struck by someone on a hydrofoil, which has a long sharp blade extending under the water. “It’s what we call a life changing injury, but it’s an injury that dolphins can very often overcome,” Mr Grossman said. He said the wound was so deep the top portion of the fin had come away and ripped further into her body. “There’s no organs as such, which is lucky for the dolphin, but it obviously is very unpleasant to see and for the dolphin, especially because it does influence her swimming abilities, hunting abilities, etcetera,” Mr Grossman said. “There’s nothing that we can do, you can’t capture dolphins, you can’t stitch that back on, you just have to take in nature’s course and it’s way to deal with it.” While Mr Grossman is optimistic Tipex will make a full recovery, he compared the injury to a human losing a limb. “You wouldn’t die from it most certainly, unless you get an infection, but you would start changing your life to adjust to that injury,” he said. “It will affect her, but we are hopeful and believe that she will make a recovery and then learn how to live with it.” Mr Grossmann urged the public to be cautious when travelling through the estuary and around the Bunbury Cut by going slowly, maintaining a distance to wildlife and being mindful of fishing lines. “If you drive through the Cut or you see dolphins in an area, or you know there’s dolphins about, it’s your responsibility, no matter what you’re driving, to slow down and look out for others — it’s not just yours to use,” he said. For more information on the laws about viewing dolphins from a distance, Mr Grossman said people could refer to this brochure from River Guardians.