The decimation of nature across the globe is tragic. Ecosystems that have flourished for thousands upon thousands of years are crashing all around us as man takes in an unsustainable, reckless manner. One of the biggest issues is the loss of apex predators, keystone species that are fundamental to the maintenance of complicated food webs and the biodiversity they entail.
A wonderful time making rock mountains and searching for crabs in the shallows with my son was interrupted by an excited shout from my wife and arms pointing further out to sea. I dragged my head out of the water and heard the word "Dolphins!"
I scanned the sea, and yes, there was one, 50 meters out shooting across the bay. Then another, then another. Before I knew it there were dozens of dolphins breaking the surface like whack-a-mole. While my son moved back on to the beach to show his brother, I excitedly swam out towards the dolphins and rest of the family.
A pod of at least 30 dolphins came straight past us heading north up the coast. The closest ones can't have been more than 20 meters away, clear against the misty mountain backdrop. As if it could not get better, some of them started breaching. I can barely describe how exhilarating it was. My joy burst out and I found myself calling to the wonderful creatures. Better than that, I could hear the palpable excitement bubbling out from across the family, with my daughter giggling and boys' shouting "dolphins!".
One of the boys had the composure to get out my phone and film a short clip of the action from the beach. That his thrill shows itself in fingers on lense and camera jumping around only adds to the clip for me. I am so happy that my kids can still experience such wonders of nature.
Future generations may not be so lucky, unless we take concerted action to halt and then, where possible, reverse the destruction now. Seeing pods of such size in the massively depleted waters of Greece gives me hope. While so much is gone, all is not lost...
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