Dolphins, sea lions comb Iraqi waters for mines
Sea lions and bottle-nosed dolphins are assisting coalition naval forces in their military campaign in Iraq by scouting for underwater mines.
According to a FoxNews.com report, the mammals are fitted with cameras and are specially trained to locate mines.
The explosives are a threat for the military patrolling the Iraqi waters and the mammals are helping divers ensure that the coastline is free of danger for humanitarian aid shipments on the way to the southern port of Umm Qasr.
Navy's Marine Mammal Programme public affairs officer Tom LaPuzza said dolphins are trained in swimmer defence, meaning they look for enemy divers, and in mine hunting
Sea lions and bottle-nosed dolphins are assisting coalition naval forces in their military campaign in Iraq by scouting for underwater mines.
According to a FoxNews.com report, the mammals are fitted with cameras and are specially trained to locate mines.
The explosives are a threat for the military patrolling the Iraqi waters and the mammals are helping divers ensure that the coastline is free of danger for humanitarian aid shipments on the way to the southern port of Umm Qasr.
Navy's Marine Mammal Programme public affairs officer Tom LaPuzza said dolphins are trained in swimmer defence, meaning they look for enemy divers, and in mine hunting
"Mine hunting is what they are doing in the Gulf now. (They are) looking for mines in shallow water or mines tethered in the water waiting for a ship to hit them," he said.
Explaining further, he said the dolphins will use their sonar to seek out mines, which may have been planted on the seabed by Iraqis.
He added that regular sonar hardware is less effective than the mammals' highly tuned natural abilities.
Top priority
Meanwhile, US Navy Captain Mike Tillotson said the safety of the mammals, which came from San Diego, California, is top priority.
"They were flown over on a military animal transporter in fleece-lined slings," Tillotson said. "We keep them in a certain amount of water. They travel very well."
The dolphins have been trained not to make contact with the mines but to place a marker near them. Human divers remove the mines.
K-Dog, the bottle-nosed dolphin pictured, is part of the multinational Commander Task Unit 55.4.3 and is conducting missions in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Apart from the mammals, the navy uses robots to seek the underwater explosives - but the mammals have proven more effective.
Safe environment
The US Navy Marine Mammal Programme began in about 1960 when navy scientists began studying the mammals' hydrodynamics in hopes of improving torpedo, ship and submarine designs, according to the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command Website.
Soon researchers found that dolphins and sea lions had other assets that would be helpful to the military.
Animal rights groups have protested the use of the mammals in military endeavors, saying it is abusive to the animals. Controversy has surrounded the capture and release of the animals.
"They are operating in their natural environment. Mines don't go off when dolphins go by them. The environment is not dangerous," said LaPuzza.
The dolphins are accompanied by their military handlers, navy civilian trainers and veterinarians.
