My Dolphin Project by Peter Bell

Why I like Dolphins?

• Dolphins have a lot of fun

• I would love to swim and play with a Dolphin

• I prefer the bottle nose Dophin

• Some Dolphins are in danger

Facts about Dolphins

• They travel in “pods” or “schools” – some schools contain over 100 Dolphins

• They are very social animals. Often, many pods group together to form congregations of hundreds of dolphins.

• Dolphins with long beaks can have as many as 260 teeth

  

• Dolphins eat mostly at or near the surface

• Dolphins are carnivores -- most eat fishes and/or squids

• Spinner Dolphins can leap 3m out of the water and spin around as many as 7 times in the air

• Dolphins have streamlined bodies that help them move fast in the water (up to 40 Km/h or 25 m/h)

• Dolphins are some of the most intelligent animals in the sea

• Killer whales are the largest species of dolphin and can grow to 10 m and weigh up to 10,000 kg (~10 cars) - The fin of a killer whale can be as tall as a person

• Average life span: 10 to 50 years

• Size: "typical" dolphins are about two m long and weigh 100 kg

• Dolphins and other toothed whales have 66 species

• There are 33 species of oceanic dolphins

• River dolphins have 5 species

• Orcas are the largest member of the dolphin family, Delphinidae

• Some sharks (including tiger sharks, dusky sharks and bull sharks) and orcas will prey upon dolphins

• Dolphins are also often trapped in people's fishing nets

• Dolphins can dive down to more than 1,000 feet (300 m) and can jump up to 20 feet (6 m) out of the water.

• Dolphins breathe air at the surface of the water through a single blowhole located near the top of the head. They need to breathe about every 2 minutes, but can hold their breath for several minutes. Their blow is a single, explosive cloud.

• Bottlenose dolphins have a maximum life span of about 25 years

• The bottlenose dolphin grows to be at most 12 feet (3.7 m) long, sometimes weighing more than 1,400 pounds (635 kg). Most are smaller than this

• Like other whales, dolphins swim by moving their tail (called flukes) up and down. Fish swim by moving their tail left and right.

How do Dolphins See and Hear?

• Dolphins make a clicking sound (created in the dolphin's nasal passages just below their blowhole) that travels through the water – when the sound hits some fish it bounces back as an echo (sonar – like submarines)

• Dolphin can tell where the fish are by listening to the returning echo and know where to go for lunch

• Dolphins communicate with each other by making clicking and whistling noises

• Bottle-nose Dolphins is highly active and well known Dolphin subdued grey colouring and a prominent dorsal fin – great variation in size and appearance

• The Northern and Southern White whale dolphins are the only Dolphins that don’t have a dorsal fin

Where are Dolphins?

• 

• In England I have been to Durlston Head in Dorset where they see a lot of Dolphins swimming close to the shore

Types of Dolphins:

Bottlenose Dolphin

• Grey colour

• Darker on top

• Usually in small groups of up to 12

• Dark dorsal fin

• Prominent beak

• Acrobatics can be common

Common dolphin

• Faint yellow bands on side

• Larger groups than bottle-nose

• Prominent beak

• Fin is same shape, but smaller than the bottlenose

• Highly active

Risso’s dolphin

• No beak

• Large rounded head

• Usually, taller and straighter fin than bottlenose (upto ½ m)

• Prominent scratches on back and head

• Often active on surface

• Mostly eat squid (and fish)

• Groups of Risso's dolphins are 3-30 animals, although "super-pods" of up to several thousand together have been noted

Striped dolphin

• Long, dark side stripe

• Slender body

• Pink or white underside

• Prominent beak

• Acrobatics can be common

• Probably one of the most common of all dolphins

Tucuxi dolphin

• One of the smallest of all dolphins

• Found in shallow coastal waters and rivers

• Individuals and groups differ greatly in colour

Short snouted spinner dolphin

• Has a dark grey or black dorsal cape and shorter, slightly stubbier, beak than the long-snouted spinner dolphins

• Sometimes spins when breaching, though rarely leaps high

Long snouted spinner dolphin

• One of the most acrobatic of all dolphins

• Well-known for its spectacular aerial displays

• Many different varieties of this species

Atlantic hump-backed dolphin

• Very similar to the Indo-Pacific hump-backed, but their ranges do not overlap

• Named after the elongated hump in the middle of its back

Pan-tropical spotted dolphin

• Varies greatly in size, shape and colour

• Most can be identified by their distinctive spotting and extremely active behaviour

Southern Rightwhale dolphin

• Easily identified at sea by its very striking black and white body pattern

• Only dolphin in the southern hemisphere without a dorsal fin

Rough-toothed dolphin

• Very distinctive – uniquely shaped head

• Rarely seen in the wild and poorly known

Northern Rightwhale dolphin

• Unmistakeable at sea – distinctive black upper side and sides, and no dorsal fin

References

• http://www.acsonline.org/factpack/map-dolphins.html

Pictures

                

       

 

Dolphin Quiz

1. Dolphins belong to this group of animals that are warm-blooded, have hair, and nourish their young with milk. What is this group called?    M____________

2. Are dolphins a type of fish or a type of whale? ____________________

3. Dolphins breathe this substance through a blowhole and into their lungs. What is it?     A_________________

4. While swimming through the water, dolphins steer using these. What are they?    F_________________

5. Dolphins are meat-eaters. What is another word for this term?    C______________________

6. What type of animals do dolphins eat?    F ___________________

7. Dolphins swim by moving their tail up and down. What is another word for a dolphin's (or other whale's) tail fin?    F____________

8. Dolphins can sense their prey even in dark or murky water. What is this ability called?    S________________

9. Dolphins often live in small groups. What is the word for a group of dolphins (or whales)?    P______________