Exploring the Secret Lives of Dolphins | 4K Nature Documentary

The great oceanographer Jacques Cousteau once said, if you want to study fish, first you need to become one. The same is true, perhaps even more so, of dolphins. However, it is almost impossible to study dolphins underwater in the wild, as a dolphin among dolphins, so to speak. Dolphins are generally very shy and keep their distance. Encounters between divers and dolphins are usually brief. They just appear out of the blue and then vanish again. Nevertheless, we have found some people with a very special relationship with dolphins, Angela Ziltner and Michael Stadermann. With their help, we were able to film the family secrets of the bottlenose dolphin at closer quarters than any camera team before, because Angela and Michael have been, more or less, adopted by the dolphins. Our story begins in 2006. The dolphin dancer, a tourist pleasure boat, is cruising across the Red Sea. The passengers are carefree tourists who have come to Egypt on a diving holiday. Michael Stadermann is the owner of the dolphin dancer. On board for the first time is Angela Ziltner from Switzerland, a young biologist with an interest in one particular species of mammal. And Michael is exactly the person who can help her. He knows of numerous coral reefs where Angela's favorite animals can often be found. Angela is not a very experienced diver, and she is here for the first time today. So Michael explains the procedures very carefully and helps her put on her equipment. At the start of any diving holiday, there is normally a check dive. Michael needs to know how Angela copes underwater, whether she can manage her equipment and not get into a panic. She seems a bit nervous as she jumps into the warm water. Angela is in luck. Directly under Michael's boat, the Red Sea shows itself in all its glory. Michael doesn't dive like other people. He has adopted a sort of dolphin style, which enables him to reach the best places on the reef faster than the other divers. And then Angela discovers why she is so lucky to be diving with Michael. He seems to attract the dolphins in an almost magical way. The dolphins seem not the least bit frightened by this encounter with humans. They're interested in the divers, sound them out using their sonar, and watch to see what they are going to do next. A female dolphin comes swimming past with her calf. It looks as if she would like to show her baby what these humans are like. Or does she want to show Michael and Angela her calf? In any case, the female is so relaxed in Michael's company that she nods off. The best dive of her life. At this point, not much is known about the dolphins in the northern Red Sea, except that they exist. No marine biologist has yet managed to count them or to follow their migration paths. No one knows what they eat or how they behave within the group. Do we see the same dolphins every year, or are they different ones each time? Nobody knows. Occasionally, divers may be lucky enough to observe unusual behavior, but nobody has attempted to unravel the secrets of the dolphins. That evening, Michael tells us the fascinating story of the dolphins of Hurghada. In 2001, Michael moored a boat full of divers on a reef to the north of the town. There, they came across a dolphin, which would change their lives. It approached the boat and did not swim away when Michael and his guests entered the water. They spent the entire afternoon swimming with the dolphin, which they named Ferdinand. There was a reason for Ferdinand's unnatural behavior. He was injured. His right side looked fine, except that his dorsal fins seemed a bit bent. Michael was shocked, however, when he saw the dolphin's left side. Ferdinand had clearly been bitten by a shark. Weakened by loss of blood and pain, he was no longer able to keep up with his pod. Dolphins are social animals, and Ferdinand sought company, even if it was only that of humans. Over the next weeks, Michael repeatedly encountered the dolphin, whose wounds slowly healed, and then, one day, he disappeared. But he came back again, and this time, he was not alone. Fully recovered and in robust health, he had been able to rejoin his old pod again. He can still be easily recognized today because of his bent dorsal fin. Angela realizes she has discovered something very special. Nowhere else in the world can you get so close to dolphins in the wild. Angela decides she must set up a research project here. But first, she has a different task ahead of her. Back at home in Switzerland, she still needs to complete her studies with a dissertation about chimpanzees in zoos. In order to set up a dolphin research project in Egypt, she would have to give up everything she loves and leave behind her friends and family and her work as a zoologist. It would be a very risky business. She would have to give up her entire life as she knew it, including a well-paid job in exchange for a precarious future running a research project in a foreign country. But she is so enchanted by the dolphins that she decides to take the plunge. She gives up her job and her flat, says goodbye to her parents, and sets off on the biggest adventure of her life. The Egyptian tourist resort of Hurghada on the Red Sea. Thirty years ago, this was a dusty backwater inhabited by only a handful of fishermen. Today, it's a booming metropolis. No one knows how many people live here. It must be hundreds of thousands. There are constant comings and goings, depending on the number of tourists. It is hardly surprising that Angela looks preoccupied. She's facing a completely unknown future. She's established her own dolphin research organization. So far, however, it has no funds available. For the time being, Angela will be living on her savings. She'll be devoting her entire life to the study of the dolphins of the Red Sea. The town, which looks so strange and exotic, will be Angela's new home from now on, and will be accompanying her. But Angela will not be starting her new life alone. She'll be living in Michael's house, and he and his team are to be her new family. What's more, the members of Michael's team are crazy about dolphins. They'll be helping Angela with her research wherever possible. The project could not survive without these enthusiastic volunteers. Angela knows how to carry out scientific research. But will she be able to motivate her team over the next years? Every underwater expedition begins with sheer hard work. Dozens of compressed air tanks and diving gear, scientific equipment, computers, GPS units, binoculars and cameras must all be stowed away aboard the Sea Rainbow. And then you need to remember where each item actually is. The team also includes Pierre, a vet, Sina, a biologist, and Natalia, the underwater photographer. We shall be filming with two underwater cameras simultaneously so that we don't miss anything. The team will identify and catalog the dolphins. They'll find out where they prefer to spend their time and, above all, Angela hopes they'll make many new scientific discoveries. That looks great, super. It's perfect with the white. Lovely. The Sea Rainbow is really a pleasure boat. But the dolphin experts on board and the experienced crew are transforming it into a research ship. Dolphins are easy to spot when the weather is good and the sea is calm because they have to surface to breathe. In Hurghada, it is easier still. You need only watch where all the excursion boats are heading. That is usually where the dolphins are. Michael is always the first to be ready to dive. The boats are following a large pod of dolphins. It looks as if they're not at all bothered. They continue swimming calmly up and down. Angela is clearly excited and a little tense. She's been working for years towards this very moment. Now, she's preparing for the first dive of her very own research project. Even when dolphins are nearby, it is by no means easy to find them. If the dolphins don't want to be found, not even the most experienced diver will spot them. And even if they do, a dolphin can out-swim any human with a mere flick of its fluke. And we, as the newcomers to the team, will have no chance at all of keeping up, unless the dolphins invite us to join them. And that is just what happens. After an enthusiastic greeting, the pod calms down again. Only now does their behavior become interesting for scientists, because they behave completely naturally. Their actions are not influenced by the presence of the divers. Angela is able to keep pace with the dolphins. The unusual dolphin-like diving style, which Michael taught her, enables Angela to accompany the pod over long periods. To us, it seems almost like a miracle. The dolphins have accepted Angela and Michael into their group, as if they were dolphins too. An old friend comes to join us, Ferdinand with the bent dorsal fin. Years ago, when she saw Ferdinand underwater for the first time, Angela was surprised to discover that Ferdinand is not a male dolphin at all. Ferdinand is a female. Not everyone was willing to believe her then. We are enchanted to see how gentle the dolphins are with each other. As they swim along side by side, they constantly touch and caress each other. Then, Angela spots something unusual. A dolphin swims across the middle of a gorgonian bush. Gorgonians are not plants. They're animals, a form of soft coral. This female dolphin even turns round and swims across again. Why does she do that? Does the gorgonian have a pleasant texture, or is there some other reason? Angela is determined to find out. Jellyfish have a hard time when dolphins are in the vicinity. They love to bite these flabby creatures, a sort of marine chewing gum, so to speak. This is Laura. She grabs hold of a jellyfish for a very specific purpose. She stuffs the jellyfish into a hole in a block of coral. When she has managed that, she fiddles around to release it again. Why does she do that? Another mystery for Angela. Is it a game, or an unknown hunting technique, or something quite different? Angela has not yet found the solution to that riddle. The dolphins have reached a coral reef called Fanus West. It is equally popular among dolphins and tourists alike. Now it is late morning, and an armada of excursion boats from Hurghada has arrived at Fanus West. Everyone wants to go snorkeling with the dolphins. Horns and whistles are supposed to attract them, although they can't be heard underwater. However, the engines of the boats can be heard. The dolphins actually come here to sleep. Instead, they're chased and grabbed, and they don't like it at all. Eventually, even the most patient of dolphins has had enough. It is impossible to take any good photos. It's hopeless, says Natalia. There are too many boats. Angela has already given up. She watches the chaos and stunned disbelief. She becomes angry when the boats move forward into the pod of dolphins. Hey, please be careful. They are little babies. Don't chase the dolphins, please. It's quite dangerous for them. Please, slow. Keep a distance of 30 meters, please. The mood on the sea rainbow deteriorates noticeably. How will they be able to observe the dolphins in peace? But it is not surprising that so many tourists come to the Red Sea. The coral reefs here are denser than anywhere else on Earth. The magnificent colors and the wealth of species living on the reefs are simply breathtaking. Biologists estimate that during a holiday here, a diver can spot up to 2,000 different animal species. Clownfish and lionfish are among the usual suspects. The giant clam was once considered to be dangerous, but is actually harmless. They cannot grab and hold on to a diver. The moray eel is also harmless. It has to open its mouth to breathe. Some creatures are hard to spot. The stonefish is well camouflaged. If you didn't know it was there, you might not spot it. And what about the second one? The female stonefish is often pursued by one or sometimes several males. They doggedly wait for a chance to mate with her. But they may wait motionless for days before their great moment comes. The tubercule sea cucumber harvests algae from the sand with its tentacles. So which is the front and which is the back? The front is probably where it is breathing. In other words, here. OK, so this is the back. But it looks just the same at the front. Lizardfish often live at the foot of banks of coral. Dolphins like to hunt them. The tasty sole has the good sense to be well camouflaged as it swims along. The camouflage is useless, however, when a dolphin comes along. Its echo sounder enables it to find the sole even when it is buried in the sand. Striped eel catfish, which usually live in dense shoals, do not form part of the dolphin's diet. They have a poisonous spine on their back. But that does not mean that they're safe from dolphins. It's a mystery what these three plan to do with the catfish. Is it another game? Are they looking for edible fish in the sand and the catfish are just in the way? Or could it be that the dolphins are just teasing them by creating a cloud of sand just for fun? Most games end when the dolphins have to rise to the surface to breathe. Sometimes they discover an energy-saving swimming opportunity. Dolphins love to coast along on the bow wave of a boat. They used to do it even before the invention of fast motorboats. In those days, they would ride along the bow wave of whales. Michael is always especially pleased when the dolphins accompany his boat. They're following us, he says. Great! In addition to the usual questions, which dolphins swim together, what do they do all day, Angela is hoping today to find out something very specific. During her last encounter with Ferdinand, she saw something suspicious, which she hasn't mentioned to anyone yet. As always, the dolphins come to greet us immediately. They are very inquisitive creatures. Then they settle down and the scientific observation can begin. Angela photographs all the individual characteristics of each dolphin, its dorsal fin and its marks and scars. She can already recognize over 100 dolphins reliably without having to consult her notes. Sometimes it seems as if the dolphins understand what Angela is trying to do. It looks as if they are posing for the camera, so that Angela can take good photos. That is nonsense, of course, but it really does look that way. Before long, the dolphins set off again. They look as if they are swimming slowly, but we have difficulty keeping up with them. Even when it's asleep, a dolphin will swim faster than a wide-awake human. A protruding coral provides an excellent opportunity for a little skin care. A chorus of welcoming whistles heralds the approach of a second pod of dolphins. Angela has found out that the 140-odd dolphins living off Hurghada do not form a single fixed pod. There are lots of smaller groups, but their composition is not rigid either. Dolphins are a bit like people with a large circle of friends. Sometimes they spend time with one friend and sometimes with another. Many also have best friends with whom they regularly spend the day. Dolphins seem to suffer frequently from itches. Several times a day, they look for places where they can scratch themselves. The dolphins wallow happily in the seagrass, a short wellness break in the daily routine. Dolphins clearly need to scratch themselves regularly, which is why Angela gets mad that dolphins in aquariums only have tiled pools with no opportunity for scratching. And another important need they have is to play. They use anything and everything the sea has to offer as a toy. A puffed-up blowfish, for example. But after a few minutes, the game is over and the dolphins move on. Pumped full of water, the blowfish survives the football match unscathed. Being able to accompany dolphins as members of the pod provides the opportunity to carry out unique scientific studies. These include the collection of samples of droppings, a very delicate substance which needs careful handling. Michael is the undisputed world champion in this discipline. He skillfully maneuvers the lumps into the test tubes. He has probably collected more dolphin droppings than anyone else in the world. And he can often even say which animal it came from, a somewhat dubious but scientifically valuable source of information. Sometimes Michael runs out of test tubes. Then he simply stuffs the dolphin droppings into the sleeve of his diving suit. There is also another way to investigate a dolphin's insides, so to speak. Like cats and owls, they regularly regurgitate indigestible matter such as fish bones or the hard beaks of squid. The team also collects samples of this substance. While the others are diving with the dolphins, parasitologist Tanja Kleinertz is hard at work in Michael's diving HQ. In an improvised laboratory, she is examining the dropping samples from dozens of dolphins. They look unremarkable, but this is also a scientific first. Nobody has collected and examined the droppings of dolphins in the wild systematically like this before. The special camera and microscope reveal an amazing fact. The digestive tract of the dolphin houses a remarkably species-rich ecosystem. The team has already discovered no fewer than 21 different parasites. And yet none of the dolphins appears ill. It cannot be a coincidence. It seems likely that a colony of parasites is essential to the health of dolphins living in the wild. The same applies to worms, which would normally be regarded as harmful to health. Especially under a scanning electron microscope, where they look like aliens from a horror film. And on board the Sea Rainbow, life does not just consist of fun dives with dolphins. Angela and Sina record every dolphin sighting with their cameras in special forms. A dolphin's dorsal fin is a bit like human fingerprints. It can be used to distinguish one dolphin from another. The team enters these vast amounts of data into their database. Data collection is not the most interesting part of the research project, but it is essential. Only scientists who know the dolphins well are in a position to draw important scientific conclusions from their observations. But what distinguishes Angela's research project from all the others is the underwater observation. Every day Angela sees examples of unusual, hitherto unknown behavior. Here Ferdinand is being stroked by a gorgonian bush. The other dolphins also use the gorgonian, but what for? The branches of the gorgonian are so soft that the dolphins can probably hardly feel them. And yet they rarely miss an opportunity to swim across them. Angela has a theory. Many corals release chemical substances when touched, and probably so does the gorgonian. Maybe these substances are effective against parasites or skin fungi. And if swimming across gorgonians is an acquired behavior pattern, it would be proof that the dolphins know how to make use of healing substances. Angela can hardly believe her luck. Here, a dolphin calf is learning from its mother how to use the gorgonian. The little creature twists and turns, but scarcely touches the coral. It watches attentively how the grown-ups do it. And it still needs to learn not to jump the queue. Another attempt, on its back this time, and still no success. But mother can do it perfectly. Next time is bound to be better, but first it has to head for the surface for a breath of fresh air. A chemical analysis will be needed to prove whether gorgonians do indeed give off medicinal substances. And Angela experiences another happy event during the day. Her previous observation is confirmed. Ferdinand, who for several years was thought to be male, is pregnant for the first time. It's crazy. Have you seen Ferdinand's belly? She's so fat she could burst any minute. She's heavily pregnant. Wow, Sina! Ferdinand's belly is just huge. And tits. She looks as if she's been to Silicon Valley. The dolphins swim on. In order not to lose sight of them, the sea rainbow has to follow behind at an appropriate distance. Then, late that afternoon, the weather becomes very strange. Now as many pairs of experienced eyes as possible are needed. The setting sun is shining across a mirror-calm, hazy sea. The two captains can no longer see where coral reefs are lurking under the water. Normally, reefs betray their presence beneath the surface by the way the water ripples. But today, there is not a ripple in sight. Because of the reflection of the sky on the water's surface, you can only see what is immediately underneath the boat. But it's much more important to see what is in front of the ship. Slam on the brakes. Rudder hard to starboard. That was a close shave. The sea rainbow nearly crashed into a coral reef. The only solution is to go into reverse and then anchor above sandy ground. So that's an end to the research for today. The researchers and the crew will have to take a break. Everyone is relieved, although Angela would have liked to carry on. Her dolphins don't wait for her. They continue on their journey to an unknown destination. So far, Angela has not succeeded in observing the dolphins in the dark. What they do at night remains their secret for the time being. But she has her suspicions. In the morning, they always collect lots of droppings, so maybe the dolphins eat at night. Since dolphins have a type of sonar like bats, they can easily track down their prey and hunt at night, just as they do by day. We also know that dolphins often eat squid. This secret was discovered by collecting the regurgitated matter, which frequently contains the beaks of squid. This octopus does not have much to fear from dolphins during its nocturnal prowl. It is no bigger than a thumbnail. Angela simply couldn't wait. She spent the night evaluating all the photos taken during the day, and yet she's still up and ready to go the next morning at 5 a.m. Not everyone is so enthusiastic. There isn't a dolphin in sight, so Pierre sets up his underwater microphone. When you can't see them, dolphins often betray their presence by their sounds. Not much is going on this morning. Pierre can only hear a few clicks. At least there are some dolphins nearby, reason enough to squeeze back into our diving gear. Half past five in the morning. That's how it goes. Here they are, behind us, five of them. The five dolphins turn out to be a largest group of about 30. They're swimming rapidly and are interested neither in Angela nor in us and our cameras. Having spent the night hunting, they're now asleep. Dolphins must rise consciously to the surface to breathe, so they have a strange way of sleeping. One half of their brain is always awake. When the left half of the brain falls asleep, the right half wakes up. While the older dolphins are asleep, the younger ones are bored. They pass the time by caressing each other. Sex also plays an important role. Sometimes they do unexpected things. Here, for example, two males are mating with each other, or at least they're trying to. Dolphins don't have to manage without sex when they're alone. They don't even need hands. All they need is a sandy seabed. Stones, sharp-edged shells and splinters of coral don't seem to bother them. The first person to realize we're due to witness something remarkable today is Pierre with his hydrophone. The sounds he's picking up are very different from the usual ones. Pierre can hear lots of dolphins squeaking excitedly. Something is going on out there. Four male dolphins that Angela does not recognize come rushing over. The unknown males cause a tremendous uproar. And then fighting breaks out. The animals chase each other, bite, thrash with their flukes and shove each other with their snouts. Michael tells us later that for the first time he felt threatened as the dolphins rushed towards him. The fighting continues for some time and the group seems unable to settle down. And then, all of a sudden, the uproar is over again. Wow! Incredible! What a fantastic scene! They came out of the lagoon and then another group arrived. It was probably an attack. And then I heard sounds I've never heard before. Banging, chirping and all sorts of sounds in between. Almost human, like a siren. Unbelievable! At the beginning we were with Elisad and Ria. And then suddenly the others arrived. They just went for each other. Flecky escaped two or three times and came over to us in search of protection. We must go back in again. Now they're coming over to us. So back in again then. Flippers, camera. The first group is back again. Angela notices that one female and her calf are missing. The male dolphins have clearly abducted a female to join their pod. The dolphins are still very agitated and the mood remains volatile. In order to let off steam, some of them mate energetically. Even Flecky, who was so nervous just now, joins in. He can be seen at the bottom, recognizable by the mark above his left pectoral fin. Conflicts and tension are solved through sex. Here, dolphins resemble the higher primates, such as the bonobos. And, as always with dolphins, just when things are really great, they have to pause for breath. But the sensations on this day are not over yet. The dolphins have another huge surprise in store for us. Suddenly, Ferdinand comes rushing over, and she is not alone. Michael sets out in pursuit. He is not sure what he has seen. Has Ferdinand given birth, or does the baby belong to another dolphin? Now, there can be no doubt. Ferdinand, the female dolphin with whom it all started, has a calf. The mother and baby are accompanied by Raya, a sort of midwife. The baby is very tiny, and possibly only a few hours old. For Michael, Ferdinand was always a very special dolphin. And the fact that she has come to show him her baby is one of the happiest moments of his diving career. All of us, the entire team on the Sea Rainbow, are happy and moved. It was so incredibly tiny, but it really is Ferdinand's baby. It swam around me three or four times, very close. A tiny baby, but it is Ferdinand's. Cool, there was no other dolphin in sight, so it can only have been hers. And then they closed in on me, 12 of them. The dolphins were all around me, directly in front of the camera, touching me. I could hardly move. Fantastic! The baby can swim surprisingly fast, but it's the smallest baby dolphin I've ever seen. That's probably why she wasn't so fat. Perhaps first babies are always that small. Lovely. Yes, so Ferdinand is a mother. Great, truly, wow, we've waited so long for this. Truly, and now it's happened. It's great. I'm looking forward to the next few days. We're bound to have some great encounters. I'm so pleased. I really am. I'm so happy. Ferdinand's baby is a bull, and the team decides to call him Frodo. To keep our fingers crossed for him. We really were incredibly lucky. Angela Ziltner's Dolphin Watch project is still very new, only a few weeks old. And yet the team has already been able to observe many types of behavior which have never been seen before by man, let alone filmed. And every day brings new insights. But all the research in the world is useless if it doesn't help the dolphins. Angela's main aim is therefore that one day, with the help of her data, a dolphin conservation area will be established off the coast of Hurghada. Only when that happens will she feel that she's been successful.