By Dr. Christine Koesterman
Winter is a delightful documentary film about an injured baby bottlenose dolphin. Winter was discovered by a crab fisherman in the Florida Gulf one early winter’s morning, tangled in a crab pot buoy line. The poor little dolphin was so severely injured, with the line having passed through her mouth and wrapped itself around her little tail. She was rescued and taken to the dolphin rescue center where she struggled for her life for many weeks. So many volunteers worked around the clock, and everyone fell in love with this poor creature who proved herself a fighter, struggling so hard to live. Sadly her tail fluke was so damaged that it had to be amputated, leaving her with great difficulty in swimming. Eventually she was fitted with an artificial fluke and taught to swim again.
The story of Winter is a heartwarming story of courage and commitment, overcoming great odds and achieving success. Winter’s story is now used as a great example of hope and inspiration to children and veterans who are facing amputation of limbs and dealing with learning to use a prosthetic limb. Many children and vets come to visit her at the center, to swim with her and see that there is hope for the future. No matter your age, Winter is a lovely movie, a rare viewing treasure where you’ll find yourself smiling though the tears.
To learn more about Winter and her friends at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. Please click the link below.
