Dolphins too stupid for suicide, says Ocean Park vet

Ocean Park yesterday countered claims that a dolphin had tried to kill itself by saying the species was not "intelligent enough" to commit suicide.

However, one marine conservationist said the remark was an insult to dolphins.

According to Nimal Fernando, senior veterinarian at the park: "Dolphins can't really commit suicide. The mental ability to make a decision to kill yourself is beyond a dolphin's reasoning capability."

But Samuel Hung Ka-yiu, chairman of the Hong Kong Dolphin Conservation Society, said: "We aren't intelligent enough to judge whether or not dolphins have enough intelligence to kill themselves.

"You can't use human standards to measure dolphin intelligence."

Claims that 14-year-old Indo-Pacific bottlenose Pinky had attempted suicide at the park's Marine Mammal Breeding and Research Centre were triggered by a video that went viral on Facebook last week showing the dolphin slamming herself against a pool wall.