Experts at the American Association for the Advancement of Science conference in Canada said they wanted support for a Declaration of Rights for Cetaceans (dolphins, whales and porpoises).

Psychologist Dr Lori Marino said: “We went from seeing the dolphin-whale brain as being a giant amorphous blob that doesn’t carry a lot of intelligence and complexity, to not only being an enormous brain, but an enormous brain with an enormous amount of complexity that rivals our own.”

Meanwhile, researchers at SpeakDolphin​.com have reported significant breakthroughs in deciphering dolphin language. Using CymaScope technology, dolphins’ complex system of whistles, moans and clicks can now be converted to images, which researchers can document alongside dolphin’s behaviour in order to interpret their meaning.