Artificially Conceived Dolphins Born

H O N G   K O N G, June 27 -- The world's first artificiallyconceived dolphins have been born in tiny Hong Kong, marking amajor step in efforts to reduce inbreeding in captivity andpreserve endangered dolphin species.

The two calves, which have yet to be named, were born ninedays apart in May, scientists in Hong Kong said.

Mothers Ada and Gina, both bottlenose dolphins, made historylast June when they became the world's first dolphins to besuccessfully inseminated artificially.

Using ultrasound, scientists from Hong Kong's PolytechnicUniversity, the territory's Ocean Park aquarium and Seaworld inthe United States were able to accurately predict ovulation indolphins for the first time.

‘Fat and Healthy’

Dolphins have very irregular ovulation cycles, makingartificial insemination exceptionally difficult, and pastattempts in the United States have failed.

The calves, one female and one male, have been keeping closeby their mothers, said Fiona Brook, head of the 12-year-oldproject and an associate professor at the Polytechnic University.

"They are big, fat, healthy calves," Brook told Reuters.

While dolphins in general do not have problems reproducing,inbreeding can quickly become a problem with dolphins incaptivity, which produces genetically weaker offspring.

Artificial insemination broadens the genetic pool and reducesthe need to bring in dolphins from the wild.

Ada, 17, and Gina, 20, from Indonesian waters, wereimpregnated just over a year ago with sperm from 17-year-oldMolly, also a resident at Ocean Park.

The technology also could be used to help endangered dolphinspecies.

Concern About Dolphins

Scientists and environmentalists in Hong Kong areincreasingly concerned about pink dolphins, also known as ChineseWhite Dolphins, which are facing extinction because of pollutionand overfishing.

Marine biologists in Hong Kong believe there are only about150 pink dolphins left in China's nearby Pearl River estuary,while 1,000 may still survive in southern Chinese watersincluding areas off Macau and Hong Kong.