Dolphin's New Tail Offers New Direction

June 11, 2008 -- Crowds flock to a Florida aquarium, jostling to see a dolphin that may be missing a tail but has an inspirational story behind it.

Popular, young dolphin Winter arrived at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium two years ago. She was a baby when she was rescued from a crab trap and rushed to the aquarium's marine mammal hospital.

Experts saved her life, but they couldn't preserve Winter's tail, which was so seriously damaged that it eventually fell off.

But Winter got a lucky break when a prosthetic tail was designed for her to wear. And for the last year, Winter, who had been swimming from side to side like a snake, has learned how to dip up and down, like dolphins normally do.

"It's a very controlled process. It's like going to school," said Winter's trainer, Abby Stone. "We use different cues on her body, so we might touch different parts of her body that would let her know when to bring her prosthetic up and when to bring it back down."

The idea for a fake fin came from a company that makes prosthetics for humans.

"In Winter, the biggest challenge was how can her skin tolerate the forces she is going to need for swimming and also how we're going to keep it on," said Daniel Strezempka at Hanger Prosthetics and Robotics.

The designers had to decide "what materials we're going to use that were going to withstand her environment, which is the water," Strezempka said.

The answer turned out to be an extra-sensitive silicon sleeve, developed just for Winter, that allows the tail to be suctioned to her body.

The device is now benefiting more than just Winter: The new silicon sleeve is being used on Iraq veterans who have very sensitive injuries. And Winter has become an inspiration for many other human amputees.

"I have a patient, he's a 12-year-old boy, [a leg] amputated just below the hip," Strezempka said. "It was always a struggle to get him to wear his device on a regular basis."

But all that changed after the boy saw Winter.

"He came up and met Winter," Strezempka said. "The next day, he came back [and] he wanted a running leg. We can't get [the] leg away from him. [Winter] truly inspired him."

Winter's inspirational story has received lots of attention. Attendance to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium and revenue for its modest nonprofit mammal hospital are up 50 percent over the last year, partly due to Winter.

Now, the aquarium is building a new pool for Winter and revising her prosthetic. Next month she will receive a hinged tail with the hope that she eventually will be able to leap into the air just like other dolphins.