‘Blown away’: Aussie father and son share special encounter with dolphin while out fishing

A father and son have been left “blown away” following an incredible encounter with a dolphin just off Perth’s north.

Footage has captured the moment a dolphin approached father and son Ricky and Noah Plant just off Two Rocks in Perth on Sunday while they were fishing.

Mr Plant can be heard saying “What’s your name? Hello!” in the video, shared by 9NEWS.

The dolphin can be seen right up near the boat, delighting the father and son.

Noah managed to very close to the dolphin, even giving it a pat at one point.

Mr Plant said he’d “never seen anything like (it)”.

“I was blown away,” he told 9NEWS.

“I’ve spent my whole life on the ocean and I’ve never seen anything like that before.”

The dolphin later followed the pair a few kilometres away.

“We turned around and he was almost inside the boat again,” Mr Plant said.

The father said about 20 dolphins were also spotted nearby during the encounter, with Mr Plant saying he would “never forget” the special moment.

“ … They were just playing around the boat having a great time,” Mr Plant said.

Bottlenose dolphins are known to live in and frequent bays and coastal areas, according to The Australian Museum.

They’ve been described as social animals, with Wildlife Victoria stating some studies have found they’re so smart they can even recognise themselves in a mirror.