Marine biologists at the University of Toledo are excited for March. For reasons most people in Northwest Ohio would not expect.

“The freshwater bottlenose dolphin population in the great lakes has rebounded thanks to environmental protection laws enacted in the 1970’s,” a UT scientist told snickersee.

“The population has gone from around 100 to about 20,000 in about 30 years.” The biologist continued.

Scientists at UT tell snickersee, they expect to see breeding activity this spring.

“In the 1800’s Freshwater Bottlenose Dolphins would gather in the warm, shallow waters of the Maumee river to breed,” Scientists report.

Due to the unusually warm weather this winter, scientist expect an over abundance of breeding activity.

Scientists believe that 300-500 dolphins will enter the river near downtown Toledo in the coming weeks. Where the dolphins will stay till late May, then the they will continue to migrate to the cooler waters of Lake Michigan and Superior.

Scientists are not the only ones excited.

Restaurants in Toledo’s “Docks” district say they are being bombarded with phone calls with people wanting to make reservations to sit on their outdoor patio’s.

“It’s amazing, we’re taking reservations for the first week of April.” Chelsea a server at a popular Toledo Mexican restaurant said, “We are going to schedule extra people to cover shifts.”

The City of Toledo is also preparing for an influx of people in the city.

“We’ve been getting phone calls from all over the region asking for permits to put their boats in the water early to observe the dolphins up close,” a representative from the port authority told snickersee.

Snickersee has also learned that popular hotel booking websites are reporting a limited number of rooms in Lucas county for the months of March and April.

Where you can see the freshwater dolphins.

The dolphins are expected to remain in the Maumee river from the first week of March, through the last week of May.

Scientists say they prefer shallow waters, and are expected to linger between the Craig Bridge, and the I-75 over pass. The dolphins are not expected to go past the casino, most likely they will be repelled by the noise produced by the interstate.

Some dolphins will make there way into the Ottawa River in Point Place. The city would like to remind people that the grassy area near that River is private property and not a proper viewing destination.