1st ‘young of the year’

The first “young of the year” for 2022, according to Randall S. Wells, director of the Chicago Zoological Society’s Sarasota Dolphin Research Program. Wells wrote to The Islander April 27: “As we were conducting our regular photographic identification surveys yesterday, April 26, we observed the first young of the year … of 2022! If you look closely, you can see the calf’s fetal, or neonate, folds. These ‘stripes’ come from being folded in mom’s womb and indicate that the baby is just days old! The folds will fade over the next few weeks.” The YOY was seen in Palma Sola Bay. Islander Photo: Courtesy Sarasota Dolphin Research Program/Taken under NMFS Scientific Research Permit No. 20455