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JU mascot Nellie the dolphin gets national headlines for surpassing 60!

Nellie the dolphin, Jacksonville University’s beloved mascot, is making national headlines with her 60th birthday.

GrindTV.com featured a lengthy article on her longevity, reaching six decades old at Marineland on Feb. 27. Nellie is the world’s oldest dolphin under human care.

A spokeswoman at the St. Augustine facility told GrindTV.com that the bottlenose dolphin has exceeded the median life expectancy of dolphins in captivity by 35 years, and in the wild by 48 years.

“Nellie’s remarkable longevity has amazed us all,” Kurt Allen, the facility’s general manager, told The Daytona Beach News-Journal. “We are beyond thrilled to celebrate her life, and we consider it a privilege each day our staff, volunteers, and guests get to spend with her.”

An archival video provided in a separate article by The St. Augustine Record is below:

 

 

http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/blog/51186/an+amazing+milestone+as+worlds+oldest+dolphin+in+human+care+turns+60/