Rainbow's Colorful Nature

Rainbow loves the attention he gets when he people watches!

 

 

Time spent with the dolphins never gets old. Whether they leap through the air as though they defy the laws of gravity, or vocalize while you walk by, it’s always a wonderful feeling. However, there is one big guy here at Dolphin Research Center that manages to get a lot of attention when he literally does nothing.

His name is Rainbow and there is more to this loveable guy than meets the eye. If you’re a guest who has never walked through DRC’s grounds, and you saw a big dolphin laying with one eye up at the causeway in the same spot for most of the day, you’d wonder to yourself, “What’s wrong with him!?” We can assure you absolutely nothing. Rainbow has just mastered the art of people watching.

This handsome man not only gets people to speak and stare at him, but because his behavior is questionable, it brings a crowd. It’s not only new visitors who give him attention but often friendly faces who explain why this handsome fellow is all by himself in the corner of the lagoon. It makes us giggle to explain why Rainbow has a “toupee”. He could get sunburned on his head from staying in that spot most of the day, so we protect him with zinc oxide as sunscreen.) Or why his eye is closed. (He likes to sleep in that spot.) It’s an ingenious way to get lots of attention and a great conversation starter for staff and volunteers to explain dolphin behavior.

As soon as you see Rainbow in action during a session, you can’t believe that’s the same dolphin. If it wasn’t for the white zinc oxide you might think we switched out dolphins. With Rainbow, whether it’s time to play or nap, he always manages to spark your attention.