A speedboat owner who 'corralled' a pod of dolphins has been convicted in what is thought to be the first prosecution under a new clampdown in wildlife disturbances. Witnesses saw Christopher Barker, 45, intentionally circling the cetaceans off the coast of Scarborough, North Yorkshire, at excessive speed, causing the animals to split up.
One witness described Barker's actions as 'corralling' and on-lookers were left shocked and distressed, police said. This involved circling them to split them up.
Barker, from Brompton-by-Sawdon, North Yorks,, was charged with intentionally or recklessly disturbing a dolphin under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. He pleaded guilty and was fined £200 in what police said was the first case to come as a result of the national effort to protect wildlife at sea.
