Rare, Welcome Sight in Bronx River: Dolphins

Parks officials in New York City sound pretty happy about two new visitors. "It's true—dolphins were spotted in the Bronx River this week!" tweeted NYC Parks, with an accompanying video. "This is great news—it shows that the decades-long effort to restore the river as a healthy habitat is working." It's the first time since 2017 that dolphins have been spotted in the waterway, which is the city's only freshwater river, reports the BBC. The pair were spotted last week by Nick Banko, whose video was then shared further by parks officials.

"I told myself, 'Hold on, let me go to the dock and get closer,'" says the 22-year-old, per the Washington Post. "When I did, it was like they almost sensed my presence. Both of them passed through the surface of the water, showing their fins once more." Two dolphins also were spotted a few days later in Brooklyn, though it's not clear if they were the same ones, reports Time Out. Parks officials say they keep the Bronx River stocked with alewife and other fish, which likely attracted the dolphins, per CNN. (More dolphins stories.)