"Dolphin Play Time" has been renewed with live commentary!

At Kyoto Aquarium's Dolphin Stadium, we hold a "Dolphin Play Time" where you can see the dolphins interacting with the animal care staff.
Currently, the animal care staff who play with the dolphins and the commentators who provide detailed explanations about the dolphins.
This time, we'll give you a little glimpse of what's happening!

■"Play Time with Dolphins" has been revamped <br />Have you ever seen the "Play Time with Dolphins" program at Kyoto Aquarium?
Kyoto Aquarium is home to five dolphins who play with the animal care staff every day. You can see this during "Dolphin Play Time."
In fact, I introduced this program in a column in August 2023, but this time the program has been renewed.
⇒Click here to see previous "Dolphin Play Time" events.
This time, let's take a look at the new and changed "Play Time."

■ "Play Time" introduces dolphins with live commentary
"Play Time with the Dolphins" is carried out in cooperation with both the animal care staff who play with the dolphins on stage and the staff who act as commentators and provide commentary on what is happening from the audience.
The animal care staff who appeared on stage that day was Gakki, who played with the boy, Deal.

Another animal care staff will be commentating from the same stadium seat as the audience, on the left side of the stage. On this day, Yukipoyo will be in charge of commentary.
Now it's time for play!

Yukipoyo, who is in charge of the live commentary, said, "Instead of being able to communicate with dolphins through words, we communicate various things using our bodies, such as our hands and feet. This is called "behavior." Dolphins have memorized over 50 different behaviors and move their bodies accordingly, thinking about what they are trying to communicate."

On this day, Deal tried his hand at a variety of activities that required using both his mind and body. He shouted loudly, swam around the pool swinging his pectoral fins, and jumped, drawing loud cheers from the audience.

High Jump Deal

"Play time" is not just a time for the dolphins and the animal care staff to play to their heart's content. It is also a time to check the health of the dolphins by carefully observing their every action, such as whether they are swimming as fast as usual, jumping high, and making noise. In order not to miss even the slightest abnormality, we carefully check the health of the dolphins even during "play time."
Yukipoyo, who was the commentator, also explained the key points of the program from the perspective of the animal care staff.

■You can sometimes see a one-year-old boy named Tsumugi in the main pool!
Recently, Tsumugi, a boy born at Kyoto Aquarium in September 2022, and his mother Kia have appeared in the largest main pool, and on some days visitors can watch them play.
On this day, Gacchan and Kia, and Maimai and Tsumugi were paired up and playing together.

Gacchan (right) and Maimai (left)
Gacchan and Kia seemed to be in perfect sync, swimming with their pectoral fins swinging and attempting jumps that created big splashes, moving their bodies a lot.

Tsumugi has only recently started swimming in the main pool and is slowly getting used to her new environment. She has a hard time getting close to the stage in the middle, so Maimai starts giving her fish for food near the stage to let her know that it's safe to get close, and gradually closes the distance.
Once they get used to it, they try a behavior called "tail rubbing," which involves hitting the water surface with their tail fin to create splashes. They practice little by little, making sure that their tail fin hits a stick called a target that Maimai is holding.

Tsumugi will be taking on many new challenges in the future, so please keep an eye on its future growth.

Maimai and Tsumugi

■Finally <br />Every day, we interact with and communicate with the animals you visit, please enjoy watching the communication between the dolphins and the animal care staff during programs such as "Play Time" and "Meal Time" held at the Dolphin Stadium.

In addition to dolphins, we also hold various other animals programs!
You can enjoy observing the animals right in front of you, with activities such as "Penguin Feeding Time" where you can feed the penguins while calling their names, and "Large Aquarium Feeding Time" where the animal care staff dive into the large aquarium to feed the various fish.

Please take your time to look at the many living animals!

*Please refer to the " Events & Experiences " page for the program schedule.
*The event may be canceled or the contents may be changed without notice depending on the health of the animals or the weather.