Mahia dolphin set for a sex change

Moko the friendly Mahia dolphin has been outed while DOC has consistently described the mammal as a female, local reports suggest otherwise.

Bill Shortt of Mahia was first alerted to Moko's gender by the dolphin's behaviour towards the ladies. "I noticed in the early stages that, when the dolphin was away from the crowds and a male and female couple were playing with him in deeper water, he would always try hard to prevent the female from returning to the boat in fact he can become very amorous with females."

Mr Shortt later confirmed his suspicions through glimpses of the dolphin's underbelly.

Diver and underwater photographer Wade Doak said that, while Moko had so far been incredibly well-behaved, male dolphins were frequently known to be aggressive, especially towards women. "Some male dolphins have been so naughty towards women that they'd go to jail if they wore trousers."

Every animal was different, though, and so far Moko had been the perfect gentleman.

Mr Doak said locals and dolphin enthusiasts had known for months that Moko was a boy and had the pictures to prove it.

Conservation Department spokesman Jamie Quirk said the gender issue was a simple mix-up. DOC had not had any reason to conduct a thorough examination of Moko, so relied on anecdotal evidence to resolve its identity if and when it sees visual evidence of Moko's gender, it will make corrections to its website.

Regardless of the dolphin's gender, people should remember they were dealing with a wild animal, he said, though he had been impressed with the public's behaviour recently. "We are getting good reports of the public self-policing members of the public are telling people not to do dumb things. It's been good to hear."

One day shortly before Christmas, Moko had been peacefully resting his head on the belly of a pregnant woman, he said.

- © Fairfax NZ News