Swimmers warned to stay away from Dusty the dolphin

Swimmers have been warned to stay away from a dolphin in County Clare, Ireland, after the animal injured another bather. The dolphin, known as Dusty by locals, has been involved in four such incidents in the past month in Doolin harbour.


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Authorities have repeatedly issued warnings not to swim with the female bottlenose dolphin. Dusty charged a woman as she left the water on Sunday night with some reports claiming she suffered back injuries. Dusty is believed to have struck the woman in the kidney area with its nose, knocking her over and leaving her winded.

Coast Guard officers treated the woman at the scene before she was taken by ambulance to the Mid Western Regional Hospital in Limerick. She was left badly bruised and shocked by the incident. Dusty, believed to be about 14 years old, arrived in Doolin pier from the Fanore area of north Clare in 2011.

Dusty getting agitated with some over-enthusiastic bathers last year.

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Locals say the three-metre long mammal, named after British pop singer, Dusty Springfield, whose ashes were scattered off the Cliffs of Moher, has been responsible for injuring a number of people over the past two years, with several of those being hospitalised with significant injuries. Now local groups are warning visitors to the area to respect the dolphin as a wild animal and not as a pet, despite the friendly connotations of the mammal.