Did you catch the news item about the “pet” stingray that entertains visitors to a marina in New Zealand? These days, Brutus attracts almost as many stingray lovers as berthers to Gulf Harbor Marina, on the North Island. One of a group of rays that have cruised the harbor for years, it's only in the last year in a half that Brutus has realized that being really friendly has it perks. So now the 4-ft wide ray will come when called, loves to be petted and enjoys a handfed smorgasbord of shrimp and small fish. What's not to like?
We figure it's only a matter of time before Brutus has his own website. But for now, you can see him here:
Brutus is yet another reminder of one of the most enjoyable 'perks' of sailing – seeing wildife. Just about everyone who's sailed the oceans has thrilled to jumping dolphins and spouting whales – not to mention all the seabirds, sharks and other fish that cross your path. In our travels, and our interactions with other sailors, we've come across several marinas with 'mascot' gulls or pelicans, as well as friendly seals, eagles, ospreys and even a sea turtle.
In the marina or at sea, sealife almost always brightens your day. Ok, maybe not the barnacles on your rudder.
One of our favorites was Otto the otter, who showed up at Pier 39 Marina in San Francisco some years ago. His favorite 'trick' was stealing fenders off boats to use as playthings. In unusual behavior for a wild otter, he loved kids and would literally jump onto the docks and run to greet them. His friendly nature was eventually traced to the fact that he had been a rescue animal that had been brought back to health in Monterey, 90-some sea miles to the south. Unfortunately for Otto, wildlife experts felt such intimate human interaction was too much, so they came up and captured him, then set him loose again in a more remote area.
One of maritime history's most famous friends was Pelorus Jack, a dolphin that guided ships through a treacherous stretch of water near New Zealand's Cook Strait. Starting in 1888, he would meet ships in Admiralty Bay and guide them through French Pass. Although it was common for ships to run aground in the narrow, current-frought area, none that followed Jack ever did. In 1904, a sailor on the steamer Penguin shot Jack. The dolphin never appeared to that ship again. Legend has it that Penguin eventually went aground and was lost. By then, Jack was famous, and a law was enacted to protect him. It's believed this was the first time an individual animal was lawfully protected in any country. Rain or shine, Jack remained “on duty” for 24 years! He stopped showing up in 1912, when it's believed he died of old age.
In modern times, certainly the most famous non-human visitor to any harbor was Keiko, the orca who millions came to love as Willy in the “Free Willy” movie franchise of the 1990s. After the first one, a movement started to free Willy/Keiko for real. Millions of dollars were raised, and he was eventually transported from a small, sub-par aquarium in Mexico (where the movies were filmed) to a specially-built facility in Oregon, to – eventually – Iceland, where he was captured as a youngster in 1979. The idea was to train him to hunt on his own and re-integrate him into the local orca population. It turned out he preferred human company. Three weeks and 900 miles after he was officially released, he turned up near a small village dock in a Norwegian fjord, hanging around people and even giving children rides on his back. Caretakers continued to monitor him for 15 months until he died in 2002, apparently of pneumonia.
Does your marina have any pets or mascots? If so, please let us know.
