Habitat:
Description:
Physical Adaptations:
Behavioral Adaptations:
Diet:
Instincts:
- Dolphins are found all over the world; generally in shallow seawater of the continental shelves. Bottlenose species can be found in all oceans except the Arctic and Antarctic. These dolphins prefer to live in warmer waters. In addition to these oceans, they are also found in the Mediterranean and Black Sea. This species of dolphins is the most abundant one in the United States.
Description:
- In general, bottlenose dolphins are 6-12ft. long. Their average weight is between 331 and 442 lb.
- On average, full-grown males are slightly longer than females, and considerably heavier.
- A bottlenose dolphin has a sleek, streamlined body.
- Dolphins are mammals.
- They have a few, sparse hairs around the tip of their snout.
- A dolphin’s skin is smooth and feels rubbery. The skin has no hair or sweat glands.
- A bottlenose dolphin's skin color is gray to dark gray on its back, fading to white on its lower jaw and belly.
- Eyes are on the sides of the head, near the corners of the mouth.
- Dolphins are warm blooded.
Physical Adaptations:
- This coloration, a type of camouflage known as counters shading, may help conceal a dolphin from predators and prey. When viewed from above, a dolphin's dark back surface blends with the dark depths. When seen from below, a dolphin's lighter belly blends with the bright sea surface.
- Dolphins use their two front flippers to steer with while they are swimming.
- The fin on the back of a dolphin helps the dolphin maintain balance when it is swimming.
- Dolphins use their blow hole , located on top of the head, to breathe oxygen from the air.
- The sleek, streamlined body of the dolphin makes it a fast swimmer. They can swim up to 22 miles an hour.
- They have a thick layer of blubber which helps them maintain their body heat and protects them from predators such as killer whales and large sharks.
- Because their eyes are on the side of their head they have a nearly 360-degree field of vision. They can also move each eye independently of the other, providing even more range.
- They have 18-26 pairs of sharp, conical teeth on each side of their jaw, but they usually swallow their prey whole.
- The dolphins moves its tail s up and down to give the dolphin lift and help it dive into the air.
Behavioral Adaptations:
- The dolphin holds its breath while it is underwater. It can hold it breath between 10-12 minutes at a time.
- Since they must consciously swim to the surface to take a breath, this means they can never fully sleep. One side of their brain must always be active so that they remember to come to the surface to breathe.
- Bottlenose dolphins communicate with each other using a collection of chirps, whistles, and clicks.
- Each dolphin has a signature whistle used to identify itself. When lost or isolated, a dolphin uses the signature whistle to call out to the group.
- Dolphins produce high-frequency clicks that humans can’t hear. They use these clicks in a sonar system called echolocation. When the clicking sound reaches an object, it bounces back to the dolphin as an echo. Dolphins can process this information to determine the shape, size, speed, distance, and location of the object. Bottlenose dolphins use echolocation when hunting for fish, squid, and crustaceans.
- They are very social animals. Bottlenose dolphins generally swim in groups (called pods) of 10-25.
- They also cooperate in groups to capture prey. They take turns herding fish into smaller areas while others swim through and snap the fish up. They also use a hunting tactic called “fish whacking”, where they knock fish out of the water with their tails, and eat them when they’re flopping around on shore.
- The calf stays with its mother for 3-6 years.
Diet:
- These sea mammals feed on fish, squid and shrimp.
- They have also been documented creating bubble rings with their blowholes, spinning them with their beaks, and then then breaking them apart by biting them. The technique of creating bubble rings is a learned behavior; dolphins watch others create them and then try to mimic the behavior.
- Bottlenose dolphins must learn to hunt by watching other dolphins.
- Once it is born, the baby dolphin is pushed to the surface of the water to take its first breath.
Instincts:
- The bottlenose dolphin is born knowing how to swim.
- The bottlenose dolphin is born know how to drink its mother's milk.