A wild Australian humpback dolphin has gone viral for his hilarious habit of bringing locals gifts from the bottom of the ocean.
On May 19, 2020,
7 News Melbourne announced that Barnacles Café & Dolphin Feeding had reopened as a result of the easing of lockdown restrictions. The café, at Tin Can Bay on Queensland’s Cooloola Coast, was encouraging visitors to return to the eatery to meet, greet, and interact with the local friendly dolphin pod that frequents the establishment and has become an attraction.
One dolphin in particular, a 29-year-old male named Mystique, has become a favorite among the café’s visitors for one very special reason: he likes to bring gifts from the ocean floor to the café’s patrons.
Before the lockdown, visitors came in their droves to witness Mystique’s bounty of marine gifts. Café staff claim that Mystique sometimes brings up to 10 items to shore in a single day, and they suspect that he continued his habit during the lockdown to help lure visitors back to the café.
In awe of the friendly dolphin’s haul, 7 News posted a photo of some of Mystique’s offerings on
Facebook. In a photo, some large chunks of beautiful sea coral and barnacle-covered bottles are presented on a wooden bench by the water’s edge.
In another photo, the clever dolphin can be seen balancing a large chunk of coral on his long nose, otherwise known as a dolphin’s “rostrum.”
It was not the first time that Mystique had brought gifts to the bay. Evidently, the cheeky chap has been doing it for years, and not without an ulterior motive.
On Feb. 21, 2020, Barnacles Café posted pictures of their favorite dolphin on
Facebook, captioned, “Mystique bringing in a gift for us this morning.” The adorable, funny photos depict Mystique’s journey to shore carrying a large chunk of expertly balanced coral for his buddies at the café.
Volunteer dolphin feeder Lyn McPherson told
ABC News that Mystique started bringing gifts of his own volition but soon learned that his efforts would be rewarded with a delicious fishy snack.
“He gets under it [and] if he drops it too far out, or we say, ‘Come on, that’s not good enough,’ then he gets underneath it and brings it to us,” McPherson explained. “We swear he has a collection waiting to bring to us.”
“Since we’ve been closed to the public he has been doing it more and more,” she added. “Sometimes he will bring 10 [gifts], one at a time, and he will line them up as he has to get fish.”
Mystique is one of a pod of nine wild humpback dolphins that frequent the bay, the breed of which is usually shy with humans. As such, Mystique is the only dolphin that ventures to the shore with gifts for his human friends.
The now-viral Tin Can Bay dolphin pod first made itself known to the locals in the 1950s, explains the
Barnacles Café website, when an injured dolphin beached himself in the bay. Locals took pity on him and gave him food.
Nicknamed “Old Scarry” for his battle wounds, the dolphin made regular return visits to the bay for treats. As of 2020, the bay is familiar with a regular pod of nine, comprising Mystique, Patch, Ella, Squirt, Harmony, Aussie, Valentine, Chompy, and White Fin.
According to the
Daily Mail, Barnacles Café & Dolphin Feeding, which was previously welcoming approximately 200 visitors per day, officially reopened on May 16. Café staff maintain that Mystique and his pod, whose visits increased measurably during the lockdown, “come here for the interaction with the people, not for the food.”
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