An incredible, dramatic tale of maternal instinct and determination unfolded when a mother dolphin made a daring escape from captivity to rejoin her son.

As part of an aquarium’s program, a team had the permit to capture a dolphin. They managed to capture just one, a mother traveling with her juvenile calf.

Since the calf was big enough to hunt on its own, staff assumed separation wouldn’t be an issue. But this mother thought otherwise. Handlers said she fought harder than any dolphin they had ever seen, refusing to settle, as if her heart was still out in the ocean.

Then, one night, she did the unimaginable: she leapt, clearing a 15 foot railing into the dark sea.

For weeks, no one knew where she had gone. But hundreds of miles away, she was spotted again, swimming beside her calf. Wildlife groups stepped in and successfully fought to keep her free. And this time, the nets stayed away.

She had proved what no policy could measure: a mother’s love knows no limits.