Bottle-nose Dolphins

(Tursiops truncatus)

When my husband and I went to Sanibel Island, Florida this past year, we went on a boat ride where we excited a few dolphins off the back of the boat. We sat in the back seat and were able to see the dolphins close up and personal. How exciting it was! 

How did the dolphin get its name? I learned two versions of the story of how they were named. One said that Tursiops is Latin for "dolphin." The other said that it comes from Roman history.

We smile when we see a dolphin or more because their mouth is in the shape of a smile which makes us smile right back.

Dolphins entered our oceans 50 million years ago. Prior to that time, they were large animals with very large teeth.  As the temperature of the planet changed, so did their appearance and their ways of capturing food. Fossils of dolphins have been found that show they were here 5 million years ago.

Dolphins are mammals and so they are warm blooded just a we are. Their temperature is 98.6 degrees which is like us. You know the blow hole on top of their heads? That is actually their nose. When they come up for air, they clear their lungs with 90% clean air. When we breathe, we replace 15% of the air in our lungs.  Over the years, the nose has moved. In order to breathe, they have to keep one eye open at all times and one half of their brain stays awake. Although they do have teeth, they do not have a jaw and so they cannot chew. Instead, they use their teeth for grabbing onto their catch.

Dolphins have larger brains than people. The dolphin's brain is 3.5 pounds and our brain is 2.8 pounds. We always knew they were smart and now we have an idea of why. They stay warm because about 18% of the dolphin is made up of blubber.

Dolphins are very sociable. They live with a group of dolphins (generally 12) and the group is called a pod or a school.  They communicate with each other by making different sounds and a variety of body language (leaping high out of the water, hitting the water with their tail, and more). No two dolphins have the same whistle as they are created right after birth. They form friendships that last a lifetime. Awesome, right?

We have known about how they communicate using echolocation. This informs the dolphin of the size, speed, and where the approaching dolphin is located. When dolphins make sounds, they are communicating with other dolphins just as we use words. Their actions, movements, and their sounds are other methods they use to communicate with other dolphins.

Have you ever seen the under belly of a dolphin? When we went on the boat ride, this dolphin showed it to us.  Sitting at the back of the boat, I took photos one right after the other and did not know that I had captured the under belly. I was very excited to see it once we had returned home and I went through my photos. The photo below caught my attention because there is a bubble on its fin. Yes, I also love how the dolphin faced me so I saw its beautiful face and nose.

Dolphins jump out of the water and dive like torpedoes. They are able to hold their breath for 15 minutes under water. They can jump 15 feet straight out of the water and can swim up to 37 mph. They have an innate ability to locate objects, no matter how small.  Dolphins have a long life as they live up to 50 years. They weigh up to 1400 pounds and are generally 12.5 feet long. They do shed their outer layer. Believe it or not, they do this every 2 hours.

I have long enjoyed dolphins. They always have a smile on their face. Seeing them dive up and out and then back into the water was such fun. They showed off for us. We were very grateful.

Dolphins eat fish, squid, and shrimp. Since they are attracted to boats, they eat whatever the fishermen throw overboard. Quite an easy way to find dinner.😀 They can remain underwater for 15 minutes but, when they dive, they are usually only down for a few minutes.

 I recently learned that the Orca Whale is a dolphin. The Killer Whale is the largest dolphin. 

Dolphins are very smart and are interested in learning about us if we're in the water.

There is so much more to learn about bottle-nose dolphins. This is just a window of knowledge.


Coming next week: learn about lilies.


Thank you for visiting!

Judy

References:

Pfeffer, W. 2003. Dolphin Talk: Whistles, Clicks, and Clapping Jaws. HarperCollins Publishers.

https://www.dolphins-world.com/bottlenose-dolphin-facts/

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/c/common-bottlenose-dolphin/

http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/animals/dolphin.html

https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/bottlenose-dolphin/#world-oceans-day-dolphins.jpg

https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/bottlenose-dolphin/#world-oceans-day-dolphins.jpg

https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/bottlenose-dolphin/#world-oceans-day-dolphins.jpg