Fungie made his first appearance in the Dingle area in the autumn of 1983. “Almost from the outset, he had the urge and eagerness to interact with humans,” journalist Seán Mac an tSíthigh, who is from Dingle, told the BBC.
He added that there is a tremendous grá (the Irish word for love) for the dolphin locally and that the marine mammal is more than a tourist attraction to the people who live there.
Alongside Fungie, Dingle is well-known as one of the country’s largest Irish-speaking towns.
Managing to be charming without even trying, some pubs double as shops and traditional Irish music is widespread, while National Geographic described the surrounding Dingle Peninsula as ‘the most beautiful place on earth’.
While the official search the area’s star attraction has now been stood down, locals will continue to monitor for any sign of their beloved dolphin.
Male bottlenose dolphins have a life expectancy of between 30 to 40 years, and at the very youngest Fungie is 37 years of age and heading into the twilight of his life.
Hope for the dolphin is being kept alive by various theories. Some believe he may be off on an adventure somewhere and that he’s happy and safe.
Easterly winds tend to drive feed further out to sea and there is a chance Fungie may have gone out to chase that feed.
Another theory is that Fungie, as a solitary creature, could have gone into hiding, ‘self-isolating’ from a humpback whale and a few pods of dolphins that came in close to the shore in County Kerry last week. Others hope he has joined one of the pods.
One thing is sure – the legacy of the Dingle dolphin will live on for some time to come.
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