By Jennifer Kay AP From Star Tribune

MIAMI — Four remaining dolphins at an Arizona facility where four other dolphins have died have moved into a new home in the Caribbean.

Coral World Ocean Park in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, announced the arrival of the four Atlantic bottlenose dolphins late Wednesday.

In a statement , the park said the dolphins are being cared for in a 69,000-square-foot (6,410-square-meter) ocean habitat enclosed by a mesh barrier that extends over 20 feet (6 meters) down to the ocean floor.

The animals are healthy and exploring their new environment, Lee Kellar, Coral World’s general curator, told The Associated Press on Thursday.

All four dolphins were born in captivity, so this is their first exposure to natural sea water, waves, currents and squids and fish swimming with them.

They had been living at Dolphinaris Arizona. Four dolphins have died at the Scottsdale, Arizona, facility since it opened in 2016. It closed temporarily this month as experts investigate what caused the marine mammals’ deaths.

The relocation was a joint decision with Dolphin Quest, which owns two of the dolphins, so the animals could maintain the bond they developed over the last two years, Dolphinaris Arizona spokeswoman Jen Smith said in an emailed statement.

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