DNA reveals Fungie had a rare genetic mix

Fungie’s DNA reveals rare link between two dolphin populations.

New research has found that the famous dolphin, who lived in the harbour from 1983 until his disappearance in October 2020, had genetic links to both the Shannon Estuary bottlenose dolphin population and a much larger group living offshore.

Scientists at Atlantic Technological University in Galway made the discovery using DNA recovered from a wetsuit worn by Denis O’Regan, an Irish Whale and Dolphin Group member who regularly swam with Fungie.

The research was only beginning when Fungie disappeared, but O’Regan’s wetsuit provided researchers with another way to obtain genetic material. Laboratory tests confirmed that the DNA recovered from the suit came from a dolphin.

Analysis showed that Fungie’s ancestry was unusual.

While bottlenose dolphins sampled in Ireland generally belong genetically to one population or the other, Fungie showed links to both the Shannon Estuary and offshore groups.

The study, published in Ecology and Evolution, also examined four other well-known solitary dolphins: Nick in Cork Harbour, Finn in Carlingford Lough, Dusty in north Clare and Nimmo in Galway. All four were genetically associated with the offshore population.

The findings could help scientists better understand Ireland’s solitary dolphins, which have been recorded in Irish waters for decades.

However, why some dolphins live apart from others and develop close relationships with humans remains unclear.

The research also preserves the work of the late Lorenzo de Bonis, who helped lead the project during his studies.

Following his death, his colleagues completed the research and published the findings as a lasting contribution to the study of dolphins in Irish waters.

Images: Sean Manion/RollingNews.ie