Dolphin attacks trainer at controversial Miami Seaquarium

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. The Flipper Dolphin Show at the 38-acre facility on Virginia Key in Biscayne Bay was briefly thrown off course on Sunday when a dolphin appeared to attack one of its trainers — pushing violently several times as the trainer tried to move away. Naomi Rose, a Marine Mammal Scientist at the Animal Welfare Institute, told Newsweek that the dolphin clearly assaulted the trainer and that members of the species “rarely do anything accidentally”. The facility ran afoul of the US Department of Agriculture when government officials found several animal welfare violations at the oceanarium during an inspection last year. In a statement provided to WPLG Local 10 in Miami, the Seaquarium said that the dolphin and the trainer “accidentally collided.” “This was an uncomfortable interaction for both of them and the dolphin reacted by breaking away from the routine and striking the trainer,” the statement read.