Dolphins to the rescue again ! They have a habit of turning up to protect us when we're in hot water, or more to the point, when we're in the sea where we are helpless. A pod of dolphins circled protectively round a group of swimmers recently to fend off an attack by a great white shark off New Zealand's coast.

The lifeguards were training at a beach near Whangarei on the North Island when they were menaced by a 3-metre shark, before the dolphins raced in to help. The swimmers were surrounded by the dolphins for 40 minutes before they were able to make it safely back to the beach.

Rob Howes, his 15-year-old daughter Niccy, were among the group swimming 300 feet off Ocean Beach near Whangarei when the dolphins herded them -- apparently to protect them from a shark. Howes tried to drift away from the group, but two of the bigger dolphins herded him back just as he spotted a nine-foot great white shark swimming toward the group. "I just recoiled. It was only about 2 m away from me, the water was crystal clear and it was as clear as the nose on my face," Howes said. "They had corralled us up to protect us".

Dolphins attack sharks to protect themselves and their young, and marine biologists say such altruistic behaviour toward us is not uncommon.

Three Cheers for Flipper !