Note the lack of blubber just behind the dorsal fin of the second dolphin. Instead of being a nice, smooth, rounded body shape, these animals were almost skeletal by the time we released them. They did, however, survive (the pod was ID'd by the unique shape of each animal's dorsal fin) and were seen for many years around the harbour.

In my first 'encounter' with the politics of dealing with entrapped dolphins, Greenpeace refused to assist, informing me it was a lost cause.

They were wrong.

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society Australia assisted me in the first instance. On the second occasion, when the above photo was taken, Sea World Australia came to the rescue. (It is purely coincidental that some years later, Richard Dean Anderson joined the Board of Directors Sea Shepherd Conservation Society).

Both rescues were very difficult, and very ugly - not because of problems with the animals, but because of vested interests and political greed.

Suffice to say the dolphins are free and now protected under Vanuatu law.

If you're curious for details, I've explained more here.