By Lauren Aratani From The Guardian UK

The US navy has trained dolphins and sea lions since the Vietnam war – ‘technology is no match for the animals’ for certain missions

A beluga whale was found off the coast of Norway last week and is believed to be trained by the Russian navy. But it’s not the ocean’s only soldier with fins.

The US Navy has trained dolphins and sea lions since the Vietnam war, as part of its marine mammal program. While it’s unclear what exactly the Russian beluga whale was trained to do, America’s naval animals – specifically about 70 bottlenose dolphins and 30 California sea lions at a naval base in San Diego, California – search for objects and patrol restricted waters.

It’s no surprise that countries like the United States and Russia have turned to marine mammals to carry out searches in water. Dolphins and sea lions are intelligent and trainable, and their natural senses have beat out the capabilities of any machine or computer created by humans.

In addition to an ability to dive incredibly deep, dolphins have “echolocation” capabilities, which allow them to detect mines that are buried underwater. Sea lions, the dolphins’ comrades, have excellent eyesight, and have helped the military find lost equipment.

While it may sound like a waste of taxpayer dollars – as much as $28m has been spent to maintain the program – to play a role similar to an aquatic theme park, dolphins and sea lions have been sent on serious missions. They were used to help clear mines in the Persian Gulf during the Gulf wars and the United States’ invasion of Iraq in 2003.

Even with major technological advances in the military within the past few years, the natural abilities of marine animals still beats any robot when it comes to underwater detection. In 2012, the Navy announced that it would phase out its marine mammal program and replace the animals with robots. Over $90m was allocated to research, and the robots were supposed to be up and running by 2017. So far, it hasn’t happened.

According to the navy’s website: “Someday it may be possible to complete these missions with underwater drones, but for now technology is no match for the animals.”

Though many laud the animals for saving lives, the program has not been without controversy, as animal advocates have argued that its inhumane to keep the animals in captivity. The navy maintains that their dolphins and sea lions get the “highest standards of care” according to a statement.

The marine mammal program has also been the source of many rumors, including some reporting from the early 1990s that the navy once trained dolphins in combat, teaching them to kill enemy divers. The navy has denied this claim, saying that it’s impossible to train dolphins to be combative. 

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