Video: Unto The Shedd A Baby Dolphin Is Born

By Sarah Gouda in Arts & Entertainment on Apr 19, 2016 8:11PM

Photo via The Shedd Aquarium

Join us as we take a break from cataloguing the violence and financial problems that plague our city and revel in the pure, unadulterated joy that only a newborn dolphin can bring. Yesterday, at approximately 9:14 a.m., the Shedd Aquarium welcomed a Pacific white-sided dolphin calf into the world. Our lives will never be the same.

How does a dolphin give birth? We're so glad you asked, as you can watch the miracle of dolphin-life go down below. If the words "raw footage of live dolphin birth" make you uncomfortable, fear not, for this is about as PG as it comes. The video only captures about three minutes, and looks like a live-action Lisa Frank bookmark:

We're told the actual birth was slightly less breezy. It took a total of three hours and occurred in the Secluded Bay habitat of Shedd’s Abbott Oceanarium, the aquarium reports. Not so bad in the scheme of things, but first-time mother Katrl (pronounced kuh-TREHL) had to endure an audience of 40 members of the animal care and veterinary teams. Secluded, indeed.

All that oversight obviously paid off, though, because both mother and child are reported as healthy. The team remains "cautiously optimistic" as they monitor the newborn calf, who clocks in at 25 pounds and measures three feet long. No word on names yet, but in the meantime we can all celebrate the fact that we are now living in the same city as an objectively perfect baby dolphin.