Monkey Mia welcomes new dolphin calf

The first dolphin calf of the season has been born at the Monkey Mia tourist destination in Western Australia.

The calf was born on Wednesday and is the seventh for mother Surprise.

Department of Parks and Wildlife officers are keeping a close eye on the pair to ensure they thrive.

It was important that they were carefully protected in the first few weeks of the calf's life, Monkey Mia Dolphin Experience manager Cath Roberts said, as there was a high mortality rate for dolphins born in the wild.

Monkey Mia is in the World Heritage-listed Shark Bay and the site of one of the longest studies into Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins.

In 2013-14, more than 90,000 people visited the dolphins at Monkey Mia, where tourists can wade into the water to feed the sociable mammals.

People used to be able to stroke the dolphins, but that was banned in 1994.

"It will be some time before the calf becomes accustomed to people being near, but there are protocols in place for its protection, and the Dolphin Experience sessions will continue to allow visitors to feed the other beach dolphins," Ms Roberts said.

A competition to name the calf is underway on the "Australia's Coral Coast" Facebook page.