There is no evidence this particular dolphin is under the influence (Picture: AFP/Getty)

Various similarities between dolphins and humans have been established over the years, but the latest discovery might take you by surprise.

A new documentary appears to have uncovered evidence that the marine mammal deliberately ‘gets high’.

The BBC’s Dolphins: Spy in the Pod used cameras strapped to submersibles to follow dolphins in the wild, hoping to infiltrate the secret world of dolphins.

The team certainly achieved their aim, filming a group of young dolphins ‘getting high’ on a puffer fish’s toxins.


In large doses the toxin can kill, but in smaller doses it can act as a narcotic.



Zoologist Rob Pilley, who worked on the series, told the Sunday Times: ‘This was a case of young dolphins purposely experimenting with something we know to be intoxicating.

‘After chewing the puffer gently and passing it round, they began acting most peculiarly, hanging around with their noses at the surface as if fascinated by their own reflection.

‘It reminded us of that craze a few years ago when people started licking toads to get a buzz, especially the way they hung there in a daze afterwards. It was the most extraordinary thing to see.’

Dolphins: Spy in the Pod begins on BBC One on Thursday at 8pm.