Kerzner International, international developer and operator of destination resorts and luxury hotel properties and their partner, Istithmar PJSC, a Dubai World company, announced the completion of Dolphin Bay, one of the largest man-made dolphin habitats in the world at Atlantis, The Palm. Dolphin Bay will provide care of the dolphins by an international team of veterinarians, marine mammal specialists and laboratory technicians, said the company is a press release. The new facility will be home to 28 bottlenose dolphins and is designed to provide extraordinary care for the dolphins. It has an 11-acre lagoon featuring three interaction coves complete with sandy beaches and a tropical setting with medical and quarantine pools. There will also be a marine mammal hospital and a variety of dolphin interaction programs. According to the developers, the habitat provides the dolphins with seven interconnected resident pools, shelter from inclement weather and almost seven million gallons of crystal-clear seawater, which exceeds all marine mammal regulations currently proposed for the United Arab Emirates. Dolphin Bay will become Dubai’s first and only marine animal rescue and rehabilitation facility. It will be the only centre for stranded animals in the Arabian Gulf. Every year, many injured marine mammals are stranded and need assistance. Now with the new facility, some of these animals can be rescued, rehabilitated and returned to the wild. The centre will also provide a broad range of educational opportunities including graduate and undergraduate programming, currently being developed in conjunction with universities and local educational institutions. With the addition of Dolphin Bay, Atlantis, The Palm will employ over 165 marine mammal specialists, biologists, veterinarians and other experts to oversee its marine animal exhibits, which, along with Atlantis, Paradise Island, count as the largest in the world, with more than 250 species and 65,000 marine animals. The dolphins came to Dolphin Bay from an existing dolphin facility, the Solomon Islands Marine Mammal Education Center. All local and international wildlife laws were strictly followed in bringing the new Dolphin Bay family to Dubai. Frank Murru, Kerzner International’s Chief Marine Officer, explains, “The care of our dolphins is our first and foremost concern and we carefully reviewed every step in the process. Dubai and the Solomon Islands are both members of CITES, an international organisation, which governs the trade in wildlife.” At Dolphin Bay, the animals will receive constant world-class care and supervision provided by a dedicated team of 85 marine mammal specialists, veterinarians and laboratory technicians. Murru comments, “We have some of the most experienced people in the world involved in the daily care of our animals. Given the very close and trusting relationships we develop with our dolphins, we know them as well as we know our own families.”
Source XPRESS 22 Oct.07
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