Dolphins take up residence in Japan bay

KAGOSHIMA, Japan, Feb. 3 (UPI) -- Wildlife experts in Japan say Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins appear to have taken up permanent residence in Kagoshima Bay on the south coast of Kyushu.

Experts at Kagoshima City Aquarium said several years of field studies have confirmed two schools of some 50 dolphins are residing in the bay, Kyodo News reported.

There are young dolphins in both schools, meaning the animals are probably reproducing in the bay off Japan's southernmost island, they said.

It is rare for dolphins to be observable year round so close to a city, aquarium official Nobutaka Kubo said.

The rich marine resources in the bay present the perfect environment for dolphins, he said.