Moko traps swimmer

A woman was rescued freezing and exhausted from the sea off Mahia in northern Hawke's Bay, worn out by the playful antics of resident dolphin Moko.
The woman, reported to be named Sophie Brown, was holidaying at her family's bach when she decided to go into the water about 4.30pm on Sunday.
She was wearing a wetsuit and knew Moko was waiting for company, but did not bargain on the dolphin wanting to play for so long.
Ms Brown ended up marooned on a buoy while Moko ran rings around her, swimming around and diving alongside her whenever she tried to move.
Bystanders had noticed how long she had been at sea when she started screaming for help.
Sunset Point Bar & Bistro manager Juanita Symes said her uncle, Ian Blake, came back from the beach and raised the alarm.
The pair borrowed a dinghy and headed out to rescue the woman.
``When we got out there she had wrapped herself around the buoy and was absolutely freezing,'' Ms Symes said. ``She was freezing to death.
``She was completely exhausted. If we had left her any longer she would have run out of energy.''
A paramedic was waiting on the beach to treat Ms Brown when they returned.
Ms Brown said Moko was special to the area and she did not want people to get the wrong impression that the dolphin was trying to cause her harm.
``I've spent quite a bit of time swimming with Moko and I'm a strong swimmer so I wasn't worried at first,'' she said.
``We were playing around for a while but then when I wanted to go back in, she just wanted to keep playing.
``I became exhausted and started to panic.
``The reality set in that I was out in the ocean with a wild animal and no people around, so I felt quite vulnerable.''
It was not the first time Moko has been highly interactive with a person.
In May, local woman Rosana Ratapu was playing with Moko when he nudged a large snapper, estimated to be about 10kg, into her.
``She picked it up and its tail hit her, so she let it back in the water,'' said resident Doi Ormond, who saw the interaction.
After another hour of playing, Moko nudged the fish towards Ms Ratapu again, this time making no attempt at knocking it away.
``That snapper must have been stunned by Moko,'' said Mrs Ormond.
There have also been other reports of Moko disturbing crayfish divers and shunting a kayak offshore.
Moko has attracted worldwide attention since he took up residence at Mahia in Easter 2007, with hundreds of people turning up to swim with him.
But marine welfare organisation Project Jonah said people should take a ``hands-off'' approach and give the 3-year-old bottlenose dolphin his space.
``Although Moko is actively seeking human company, he is a wild animal, not a trained performer,'' chief executive Kimberly Muncaster said. NZPA and staff reporters