Bottlenose dolphins are an important advantage of marine tourism in Qeshm

Bottlenose dolphins, the existence of coral, sandy, rocky and sandy beaches of Derestan Bay (Dolphin Bay) on the coasts between Qeshm Island and Hemgan Island with high environmental capabilities have many advantages for the development of marine tourism in this region. .

Sea travel, especially if it is long, is boring because there is no mountain and plain, city and village, tree and forest, spring and river in the landscape of the route.

But in Persian Gulf cruises, one should always wait for small and big events that can break the monotony of zero. Birds with different colors, with small and big wings and all kinds of melodious sounds pass over the head and attract a person’s gaze. Flying fish suddenly rise from the water, split the air for a few moments and move forward, and then sink into the sea.

Sometimes a big lionfish jumps vertically out of the sea in pursuit of an unknown prey and immediately falls into the sea with a lot of noise. Sometimes a long time and distance passes without any incident. The azure sea, the blue sky, the border to the border remains wide.

The secret and mysterious sea hides what it has in its heart from the eyes of travelers and newcomers. It is difficult to understand the secrets of the sea. It is not easy to understand the secret of the heart of the sea. Sometimes we float on the blue waters of the sea for hours and kilometers without knowing what is going on in its depths.

Sometimes for a while the monotonous cruise becomes really boring and the hope of an accident and seeing an interesting phenomenon decreases. At the peak of the dolphins’ sudden despair, it is not clear where it comes from. They move so happily and energetically and split the water as if they were released from the quill of the bow, an arrow that simply splits the water and goes up and down. Sometimes they come out of the sea with incredible speed and then easily sink into it, without leaving a trace, as if a sword had been plunged into the water.

No incident at sea is more amusing than the sudden appearance of dolphins. You really can’t take your eyes off them even for a moment. On cruises, only a few passengers are lucky enough to see dolphins.

The dolphins, as suddenly as they appear, suddenly leave and go away, and again the vast and boundless sea imposes its eternal majesty on the viewer. The coming and going of dolphins is sudden and unexpected, so photographing and filming them is completely random and somewhat difficult.

In the past few years, preliminary measures have been taken to identify and estimate the extent of coral reefs in the waters around Qeshm Island. Many results have been obtained in these actions and now it seems that there is a close relationship between dolphins and coral reefs.

Coral reefs are known as one of the most fertile ecosystems in the world. The biodiversity of these rocks is unique among all the world’s ecosystems and equal to the biodiversity of rain forests. The beauty of the deep waters of the Persian Gulf around the coral reefs is equal to the gardens of Shiraz, the tiles of Isfahan or the famous Iranian carpets.

Now we know that dolphins are more likely to be seen in certain parts of the sea, around coral reefs, and we have realized the existence and presence of different types of dolphins in different parts of the sea around Qeshm. On the coasts between Qeshm Island and Hengama Island, including Diristan Bay (Dolphin Bay) and on the shores of Shib Daraz coastal village, coral reefs have a considerable extent.

Large herds of dolphins are always seen in this area. This coral area seems to be one of the most important feeding and life centers for dolphins. Most of the dolphins that live in this area are bottlenose dolphins. At the same time, these dolphins sometimes weigh more than 600 kg and their body length is about four meters, they are very agile, lively and active. Their speed and agility are incredible.

Bottlenose dolphins are highly intelligent. The agility, playfulness and intelligence of these dolphins have made them train some of them to show in show pools and circuses around the world.

The most dolphins that can be seen in the waters of the Qeshm coast. They are bottlenose dolphins. Of course, common dolphins are more common in the mangrove forests and in the waters between Bandar Abbas and Qeshm.

The common dolphin is much smaller than the bottlenose dolphin. In the sea channels between the mangrove forests in the north of Qeshm, a type of marine mammal lives called propoise.

Porpoises are similar to dolphins and live in herds like dolphins. Qeshm propoises do not have a dorsal fin and their back is flat. The movements of propoises are also spectacular in the sea like dolphins. Throughout the Persian Gulf, dolphins are not seen in any area of ​​the sea like the waters around Qeshm Island and the Strait of Hormuz.

Dolphin family

Dolphins are mammals that live in the sea and have all the characteristics of mammals. They give birth and feed their young with their thick and fatty milk. Most dolphins have long and narrow snouts. There is a row of small teeth all over the long and narrow snout of dolphins. Some dolphins have more than 250 teeth.

Dolphins live mostly in herds. Through sending sound waves and the ability to receive the returned waves and analyze them, they find out about their situation and living environment.

In this way, they become aware of the presence and existence of other animals. Hunting dolphins is like hunting bats. Bats know the position of their prey by sending waves and receiving and measuring the reflected part.

In the Persian Gulf and the Sea of ​​Oman, in the waters belonging to Iran, there has been no study on marine mammals. Iran’s marine mammals include whales, dolphins, porpoises and dugongs. Of course, we also have seals in the North Sea.

The available information is not based on research but on random observations of bodies being washed ashore by wind and sea waves. All available information about the life and behavior of these marine animals is translated from foreign sources. The small countries of the southern shores of the Persian Gulf have been studying these animals since 30 years ago by establishing research centers, and very useful information has been provided so far.

The types of dolphins observed in Iranian waters are five types of common dolphins, bottlenose dolphins, humpback dolphins, black dolphins and Yunus dolphins.

So far, these five types of dolphins have been seen in the waters of the Persian Gulf and the Sea of ​​Oman. But except common dolphin and bottle nose, other dolphins have been less observed. For example, the body of a sample of Yunus dolphin has been seen on the shores of Chabahar only once, and no one has seen this dolphin before or after that.

In the waters surrounding Qeshm Island, the population of common dolphins and bottlenose dolphins is significant. Herds of twenty to thirty of them have been seen many times. Humpback dolphins are also seen in small numbers. The bodies of dolphins that have been observed in Qeshm beaches in the past few years have all belonged to bottlenose dolphins and in rare cases to common dolphins.

The cause of death of most of them is the collision with the motor propeller of the boats and sometimes getting stuck in the fishing nets. The expansion of industrial fishing in the waters of the Persian Gulf is very dangerous and deadly for all aquatic animals, especially dolphins and turtles.

Choosing the most suitable marine habitats and declaring them as marine national parks is a very useful action that will be very effective in saving aquatic life from the danger of extinction and protecting the infinite biodiversity of the Pars Sea. Unfortunately, the Environmental Protection Organization has been ignoring the suggestions of experts in this field for many years and has had a deplorable delay. The small countries located on the southern coast of the Persian Sea have taken great steps in this field for years. The environmental organization should not delay more than this.

The Islamic Republic of Iran, having more than 2,000 kilometers of coastline, dozens of islands, and tens of millions of hectares of sea, should have taken action years ago and established several marine national parks. The current situation of protection and research in the South Sea is not worthy of the name of our country.

common dolphin

The common dolphin is a small dolphin that has a dark gray color and a yellow stripe on its sides. The maximum body length of these dolphins reaches 2.5 meters and their maximum weight reaches 120 kg.

These dolphins sometimes jump completely out of the water while playing the phone and their whole bodies can be seen. The pregnancy time of these dolphins is 10 to 11 months. The common dolphin gives birth to a baby that matures at three years of age and lives for about twenty years.

bottle nose dolphin

The adult bottlenose dolphin is an animal with a large and heavy body with a weight of about 700 kg and a length of four meters, which is incredibly agile and fast. The feeding of this dolphin is small and large fish, crab and shrimp. The pregnancy period of this dolphin is 12 months and it gives birth to one baby. The baby dolphin is one meter long and weighs about 32 kg.

Baby dolphins eat mother’s milk until they are one year old. The lifespan of bottlenose dolphins is about 30 years. Bottlenose dolphins come out of the water during swimming and show, but their whole body never comes out of the sea water. The nose of these dolphins is a hole in the back of the dolphin’s head. Breathing is possible simply by removing the part from the head. Small fishes, crabs and shrimps usually make up the food of this dolphin.

The Persian Gulf, with an area of ​​nearly 237,473 square kilometers, is located between 24 and 30 degrees and 30 minutes north latitude and 48 and 56 degrees and 25 minutes east longitude from the Greenwich Meridian, and the beautiful island of Qeshm is like a gem on the expanse of blue waters. It shines.

Having more than 900 kilometers of sea border from the eastern coast of the province (Jask) in the Oman Sea to the blue shores of the Persian Gulf in the east of the province (Parsian) and having 14 islands in the Persian Gulf, Hormozgan province is one of the most important and strategic provinces. It is Iran that has unique attractions such as unique mangrove forests and the best pearls in the world and dozens of historical and natural monuments.