All About Bottlenose Dolphins

by Elizabeth Knapp

In the 1960s, a popular TV series Here are some basic facts about
featured a bottlenose dolphin named bottlenose dolphins:
“Flipper,” who won people over with his Habitat: Bottlenose dolphins are found
clever tricks and happy smile. The Miami mostly in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.
Dolphins football team has a picture of a But they also live in the Mediterranean Sea
bottlenose dolphin on its helmets. It seems and the Indian Ocean.
we just can’t get enough of these
intelligent, loveable creatures. So what is it
about bottlenose dolphins that make them
so special?
While they may look like fish,
bottlenose dolphins are actually mammals.
They breathe air like we do and cannot
stay under water for too long or they will
die. Bottlenose dolphins are among the
most intelligent ocean mammals. Their
brains are actually larger than ours—three Population: We do not know exactly
pounds compared to five pounds. how many bottlenose dolphins there are in
the world. It is believed there are about
243,500 bottlenose dolphins in the tropical
waters of the eastern Pacific. In the waters
of Japan, there are thought to be only
about 37,000 bottlenose dolphins.
Size: Bottlenose dolphins weight
While bottlenose dolphins are very between 440–600 pounds. Their average
smart, they’re not as advanced as humans. length is about 10 feet.
But like us, they do have their own Lifespan: Bottlenose dolphins usually
language. Bottlenose dolphins use specials live between 30 to 50 years.
sounds to communicate with each other. Food: Bottlenose dolphins are meat
They also use echolocation—bouncing eaters. They eat fish like herring, mackerel,
sound and echoes off objects—to “see” and sardines. They also enjoy shrimp and
things like bats do. While we have learned squid. Bottlenose dolphins eat 13 to 33
a great deal about these amazing creatures, pounds of food a day.
there’s still a lot to find out.

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 Behavior: Bottlenose dolphins are • Bottlenose dolphins have been
very social animals and live in small known to play with humans. A bottlenose
groups called pods. Each pod contains dolphin named Percy who lived off the
about 12 dolphins. Sometimes several pods coast of England used to follow local
join together to form a larger group called fishing boats and play with their crab pots.
a herd. He even gave people rides by letting them
Here are some more fun facts about hang onto his fins.
bottlenose dolphins: • In the town of Laguna in Brazil,
• Bottlenose dolphins often look like bottlenose dolphins help fishermen catch
they’re smiling. This is because of the way fish. The fishermen wait on the beach with
their mouths curve. their nets in the water, and the dolphins
• Bottlenose dolphins get their name drive the fish toward the beach. As the fish
from the bottle shape of their nose, or approach the nets, the dolphins roll over
snout. Their snout is called a rostrum. on the surface of the water to let the
fishermen know to throw their nets.
Sadly, humans are the greatest threat to
bottlenose dolphins. In some parts of the
world, bottlenose dolphins are hunted for
food. In other areas, they are dying from
polluted waters. Sometimes they get
caught in the large nets fishermen use to
catch tuna. As a result, people around the
world have created laws to help protect
them. Today, it is even possible to “adopt”
a dolphin through special programs like
The Dolphin Project. As we learn how to
• A bottlenose dolphin’s skin is keep them safe, we will also learn more
smooth and feels something like an inner about what makes them tick. Who
tube. It sheds its outer layer of skin every knows—maybe they’ll even teach us a
two hours. thing or two!

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 Do You Speak Dolphin?
by Elizabeth Knapp

There’s a lot of whistling going on at whistles for certain objects that the
Sea Life Park Hawaii. People there are dolphins recognize. One of the objects is a
coming up with a new language to ball. “So I’ll hold up the ball and I’ll play
communicate with dolphins. But instead of the (whistle) word for ball,” he says. Then
using words, they’re using whistles. And the dolphins imitate the sound of the
the dolphins are whistling back. whistle. Over time, they learn how to put
Dolphins communicate with each other the “whistle word” for ball with the object.
by making different sounds, such as But dolphins have their own way of
whistles, clicks, and squeaks. Dolphins pronouncing the whistles. So Marten and
whistle to each other under water, through his team have to figure out exactly what
a special place under their blowholes. Each they are saying.
dolphin has its own “signature” whistle Another fun way researchers are
that it learns from its mother. This whistle communicating with dolphins is with a
is the dolphin’s name. When dolphins special underwater touchscreen. This
greet each other, they whistle their names, screen acts as both an underwater
as we would say “hello.” Dolphins are also classroom and as an entertainment center.
very good at imitating each other’s “One experiment used the touchscreen like
whistles. So the people at Sea Life Park a jukebox; each quadrant of the screen was
think that dolphins will be able to learn a a different type of music,” Marten says. It’s
new language based on whistles—and a kind of game. “We instruct the dolphin
they’re right. so it knows that if they touch the screen
something happens.” Another game is to
put four objects on the screen and play the
whistle word for one of them. If the
dolphin recognizes the whistle, it touches
the object on the screen. When the dolphin
has answered correctly, the screen lights
up, and the object dances around. The
dolphins love it!
Marten’s research is entirely new.
Never before has a language based on
sound been created to communicate with
animals. With chimpanzees and gorillas,
So far, this new language has been a people use sign language. This is much
success. Ken Marten, the director of the easier, because apes are more similar to us.
project at Sea Life Park, created special They have hands, and they use their bodies

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to express themselves. But dolphins conversation,” he says. “We will be able to
communicate entirely through sound. ask questions, and they will be able to
Also, their environment—water—is answer in very simple terms.” Marten’s
different from ours. So researchers have to goal is to help protect dolphins by showing
come up with creative ways of working the world how intelligent they are. “The
with them. rest of my career is dedicated to talking to
As Marten has found, dolphins are fast these guys, so I guess you could call me
learners. But the communication between Dr. Doolittle now,” Marten says. His
them is still very basic. One day, Marten enthusiasm has got a crowd on both sides
hopes to have a real conversation with of the water whistling.
dolphins. “It won’t be free-floating