Dolphins spotted trapping fish in mud rings in the Caribbean

By Alison Kentish

Bottlenose dolphins are luminous hunters. Some work alongside human fishers, coaxing fish ashore. Others employ shells to uncover their food. In the Florida Keys, some employ “mud rings” – and now the behaviour has been documented in the Caribbean too.

The mud ring looking out approach is a case of blindsiding prey. A “ring maker” dolphin circles shut to the ocean ground and traps fish in the aid of a hoop of mud as others lie in wait with mouths birth, and lunge to uncover any fish attempting to flee the mud by leaping out of the water.

This behaviour had been viewed handiest in the …