Strange New Creature | Dolphin Who Made Friends With A Tiger

Like a cat peering into a goldfish bowl, Akaasha the tiger cub is transfixed by a dolphin staring back at her.

Curiosity got the better of both Akaasha and Mavrick, a 14-month-old dolphin who's probably more used to a crowd of human faces gazing into his glass tank at a Californian theme park.

Staff were taking six-month-old Akaasha on her daily walk around the Six Flags Discovery Kingdom when she saw Mavrick, a 14-month-old Atlantic bottlenose dolphin.

Paws for thought: Mavrick and Akaasha have a close encounter as another dolphin looks on

The pair examined each other from all angles possible - then the dolphin blew an approving bout of bubbles towards the tiger.

Staff were taking Akaasha, who is a six-month-old female tiger cub, on her daily walk around the theme park when she noticed Mavrick, who is a 14-month-old Atlantic bottlenose dolphin yesterday.

Snout to whiskers: Their shared curiousity meant Mavrick dipped down to get a better view and Akaasha strained to get closer to the glass

Mavrick cocked his head as Akaasha strained to get closer to the glass, perhaps bewildered as to why she could not catch the scent of this strange new creature grinning at her from another world.

It may be the start of a beautiful friendship.

Nice to meet you: Mavrick blows an approving bunch of bubbles at the entranced tiger cub

Tigers are known as the best swimmers

Tigers are known as the best swimmers of all the big cats with modified webbing between their toes to make their feet more like flippers. But The Institute of Greatly Endangered and Rare Species, or Tigers, near Miami, claims to have overcome the problem by encouraging both tigers and humans to swim together in a specially adapted pool. Traditionally, trainers have struggled to build an attachment with the largest of the big cats. Despite the apparent danger, the trainers are never at risk. They've found that in the water people and tigers are on a more equal footing. The hand-reared tigers are introduced to the water a few months after birth and the trainers then give one-on-one tuition to each of the animals while they are in the water.