Bottlenose Dolphin
Bottlenose Dolphin breaching in the bow wave of a boat Size comparison against an average human
Conservation status
Data Deficient (IUCN 2.3)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Cetacea Family: Delphinidae Genus: Tursiops Species: T. The conservation status of a Species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species remaining extant either in the present day or the near future Data Deficient ( DD) is a category applied by the IUCN to a species when the available information is not sufficient for a proper assessment of Conservation status The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data List) created in 1963 is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global Chordates ( Phylum Chordata) are a group of Animals that includes the Vertebrates together with several closely related Invertebrates Mammals ( class Mammalia) are a class of Vertebrate Animals characterized by the presence of Sweat glands, including sweat glands The Order Cetacea (sɪˈteɪʃiə L cetus, whale includes Whales Dolphins and Porpoises Cetus is Oceanic dolphins are the members of the Delphinidae family of Cetaceans These aquatic Mammals are related to Whales and Porpoises They truncatus
Binomial name
Tursiops truncatus Montagu, 1821
Bottlenose Dolphin range (in blue)

The Bottlenose Dolphin is one of the most common and well-known dolphins. There are many people named George Montagu The English naturalist George Montagu (naturalist The Royal Navy Officer George Montagu (Royal Dolphins are Marine mammals that are closely related to Whales and Porpoises There are almost forty species of dolphin in seventeen genera. Recent molecular studies show it is in fact two species, the Common Bottlenose Dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) and the Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin (T. Molecular biology is the study of Biology at a molecular level In Biology, a species is one of the basic units of Biological classification and a Taxonomic rank. aduncus). It inhabits warm and temperate seas worldwide and may be found in all but the Arctic and the Antarctic Oceans. Warm is normally used as a subjective measure of Temperature, commonly used to describe a comfortable temperature The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major The Southern Ocean, also known as the Great Southern Ocean, the Antarctic Ocean and the South Polar Ocean, comprises the southernmost waters of

Contents 1 Description 2 Taxonomy 3 Behavior 3.1 Diet 3.2 Senses and communication 3.3 Respiration and Sleep 3.4 Reproduction 4 Intelligence 4.1 Cognition 4.2 Tool use and culture 5 Natural predators 6 Conservation 7 Bottlenose Dolphins and humans 8 Bottlenose Dolphins in popular culture 9 See also 10 References 11 External links

Description

The Bottlenose Dolphin is gray, varying from dark gray at the top near the dorsal fin to very light gray and almost white at the underside. A dorsal fin is a Fin located on the backs of some Fishes Whales Dolphins and Porpoises as well as the (extinct This makes it hard to see, both from above and below, when swimming. Swimming is the movement by humans or animals through Water, usually without artificial assistance Its elongated upper and lower jaws form what is called a rostrum, or beak-like snout, which gives the animal its common name, the Bottlenose dolphin. A rostrum ( Latin for "beak" is an anatomical structure resembling a bird's beak, such as the snout of a Crocodile or Dolphin The real, functional nose is the blowhole on top of its head; in fact the nasal septum is visible when the blowhole is open. In Biology, a blowhole is the hole at the top of a Cetacean's head through which the animal breathes air The nasal septum separates the left and right airways in the Nose, dividing the two Nostrils.

Adults range in length from 2 to 4 meters (6 to 13 ft) and in weight from 150 to 650 kilograms (330 to 1430 lb)^[2] with males being on average slightly longer and considerably heavier than females; however, in most parts of the world the adult's length is about 2. For the 2008 British film by Noel Clarke see Adulthood (film. The metre or meter is a unit of Length. It is the basic unit of Length in the Metric system and in the International A foot (plural feet or foot; symbol or abbreviation ft or sometimes &prime – the prime symbol) is a non-SI unit The pound or pound-mass (abbreviation lb, lbm, or sometimes in the United States #) is a unit of Mass Male (♂ refers to the sex of an organism or part of an organism which produces small mobile Gametes called spermatozoa. Female (♀ is the Sex of an Organism, or a part of an organism which produces ova (egg cells 5 m (8 ft) with weight ranges from 200 to 300 kg (440 to 660 lb). The size of a dolphin appears to vary considerably with habitat. Those dolphins in warmer, shallower waters tend to have a smaller body than their cousins in cooler pelagic waters. A cooler ( portable ice chest) most commonly is an insulated box and is used to keep Food or Drink cool Any water in the sea that is not close to the bottom is in the pelagic zone. For example, a survey of animals in the Moray Firth in Scotland, the world's second northernmost resident dolphin population, recorded an average adult length of just under 4 m (13 ft) compared with a 2. The Moray Firth ( Scottish Gaelic: An Cuan Moireach or Linne Mhoireibh) is a roughly triangular Inlet (or Firth) of the North Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. 5 m (8 ft) average in a population off the coast of Florida. The coast is defined as the part of the land adjoining or near the Ocean. Florida ( is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the Those in colder waters also have a fattier composition and blood more suited to deep-diving. Bottlenose Dolphins typically have 18%-20% of their bodyweight made up of blubber. ^[3] Most research in this area has been restricted to the North Atlantic Ocean, where researchers have identified two ecotypes. Within a Species, an ecotype is a genetically unique Population that is adapted to its local environment ^[3]

The flukes (lobes of the tail) and dorsal fin are formed of dense connective tissue and do not contain bones or muscle. A dorsal fin is a Fin located on the backs of some Fishes Whales Dolphins and Porpoises as well as the (extinct Connective tissue is one of the four types of tissue in traditional classifications (the others being epithelial, Muscle, and Nervous tissue) Bones are rigid organs that form part of the Endoskeleton of Vertebrates They function to move support and protect the various organs of the body produce Muscle (from Latin musculus, diminutive of mus "mouse" is contractile tissue of the body and is derived from the The animal propels itself forward by moving the flukes up and down. The pectoral flippers (at the sides of the body) are for steering; they contain bones clearly homologous to the forelimbs of land mammals (from which dolphins and all other cetaceans evolved some 50 million years ago). The Anatomy of Fish is primarily governed by the physical characteristics of Water, which is much denser than air holds a relatively small amount of dissolved In Evolutionary biology, homology has come to mean any similarity between characters that is due to their shared ancestry. The Order Cetacea (sɪˈteɪʃiə L cetus, whale includes Whales Dolphins and Porpoises Cetus is In fact a Bottlenose Dolphin was recently discovered in Japan that has two additional pectoral fins, or "hind legs," at the tail, appearing to be about the size of a human's pair of hands. Human beings, humans or man (Origin 1590–1600 L homō man OL hemō the earthly one (see Humus The hands ( med / lat: manus pl manūs are the two intricate prehensile multi- Fingered body parts normally located at the end of each arm of a ^[4] Scientists believe that a mutation must have caused the ancient trait to reassert itself as a form of atavism. The term atavism (derived from the Latin atavus, a great-grandfather's grandfather and thus more generally an ancestor denotes the tendency to revert to ancestral type

Female Bottlenose Dolphins live for about 40 years, whereas males rarely live more than 30 years.

Bottlenose calves are born with 88 teeth.

Taxonomy

Scientists have long been aware that the Bottlenose Dolphin might consist of more than one species. The advent of molecular genetics has allowed much greater insight into this previously intractable problem. The consensus amongst scientists is that there are two species:^[5]

• the Common Bottlenose Dolphin (T. truncatus), found in most warm to tropical oceans; colour sometimes almost blue; has a dark line from beak to blowhole, and
• the Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin (T. aduncus), living in the waters around India, Australia and South-China; back is dark-grey and belly is white with grey spots. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics.

The following are sometimes also recognized as subspecies of T. In Zoology, as in other branches of Biology, subspecies is the Taxonomic rank immediately subordinate to a Species. truncatus:

• the Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin (T. gillii or T. truncatus gillii), living in the Pacific; has a black line from the eye to the forehead
• the Black Sea Bottlenose Dolphin (T. truncatus ponticus), living in the Black Sea. The Black Sea is an inland Sea bounded by southeastern Europe, the Caucasus and the Anatolian peninsula ( Turkey

Much of the old scientific data in the field combine data about the two species into a single group, making it effectively useless in determining the structural differences between the two species. Indeed, the IUCN lists both species as data deficient in their Red List of endangered species precisely because of this issue. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data List) created in 1963 is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global ^[6]

Some recent genetic evidence suggests that the Indo-Pacific Bottlenose belongs in the genus Stenella, it being more like the Atlantic Spotted Dolphin (Stenella frontalis) than the Common Bottlenose. Stenella is a Genus in the Dolphin family. Currently five species are recognised in this genus Pantropical Spotted Dolphin, The Atlantic Spotted Dolphin ( Stenella frontalis) is a Dolphin found in the Gulf Stream of the North Atlantic Ocean. ^[7] The taxonomic situation of these animals is likely to remain in flux for some time to come.

Behavior

The Bottlenose Dolphin normally lives in small groups, usually containing up to 12 animals. The Moray Firth ( Scottish Gaelic: An Cuan Moireach or Linne Mhoireibh) is a roughly triangular Inlet (or Firth) of the North Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. The Harbor Porpoise ( Phocoena phocoena) is one of six Species of Porpoise. Chanonry Point lies at the end of Chanonry Ness, a spit of land extending into the Moray Firth between Fortrose and Rosemarkie Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. However, group size may be highly variable since they live in fission-fusion societies within which individuals associate in small groups that change in composition, often on a daily or hourly basis. Many animals including humans tend to live in groups Herds flocks, bands packs, parties or colonies (hereafter groups of conspecific individuals ^[8][9] Typically, a group of adult females and their young live together in a pod, and juveniles in a mixed pod. Several of these pods can join together to form larger groups of one hundred dolphins or more. Males live mostly alone or in groups of 2-3 and join the pods for short periods of time.

Bottlenose Dolphins studied by researchers of the Bottlenose Dolphin Research Institute BDRIoff Sardinia island show non-random social behaviour during feeding activities and their social behaviour differs depending on the feeding activity in which they are engaged. ^[10] In Sardinia the presence of a floating marine fin-fish farm, has been linked to a change in Bottlenose Dolphin distribution as a result of high fish density around the floating cages in the farming area. ^[11]

The species is commonly known for its friendly character and curiosity towards humans immersed in or near water. It is not uncommon for a diver to be investigated by a group of them. Occasionally, dolphins have rescued injured divers by raising them to the surface, a behaviour they also show towards injured members of their own species. Such accounts have earned them the nickname of "Man's best friend of the sea". In November 2004, a more dramatic report of dolphin intervention came from New Zealand. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island Four lifeguards, swimming 100 m (328 ft) off the coast near Whangarei, were reportedly approached by a 3 m (10 ft) Great White Shark. History Captain James Cook and the crew of the Endeavour were the first Europeans to contemplate the Whangarei The great white shark, Carcharodon carcharias, also known as white pointer, white shark, or white death, is an exceptionally large lamniform A group of Bottlenose Dolphins, apparently sensing danger to the swimmers, herded them together and tightly surrounded them for forty minutes, preventing an attack from the shark, as they returned to shore. ^[12]

Dolphins have also been documented exhibiting altruistic behavior toward other sea creatures. On Mahia Beach, New Zealand on March 10, 2008^[13] two Pygmy Sperm Whales — a female and calf — became stranded on the beach. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island The pygmy sperm whale ( Kogia breviceps) is one of three Species of Toothed whale in the Sperm whale family. Rescuers, including Department of Conservation officer Malcolm Smith, attempted to refloat the whales, however their efforts failed four times. Shortly before the whales were to be euthanized a playful Bottlenose Dolphin known to local residents as Moko arrived and, after seemingly communicating with the whales, led them 200 meters along a sandbar to the open sea. ^[14]

Dolphins are predators however, and they also show aggressive behaviours frequently. This includes fights among males for rank and access to females, as well as aggression towards sharks, certain Orcas, and other smaller species of dolphins. Sharks ( Superorder Selachimorpha) are a type of Fish with a full cartilaginous Skeleton and a highly streamlined body The Orca or Killer Whale ( Orcinus orca) less commonly Blackfish or Seawolf, is the largest species of the Oceanic dolphin family During the mating season male dolphins compete very vigorously with each other through displays of toughness and size with a series of acts such as head butting. At least one population, off Scotland, has been observed to practice infanticide, and has also been filmed attacking and killing Harbour Porpoises. Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. Infanticide is the practice of someone intentionally causing the death of an Infant. The Harbor Porpoise ( Phocoena phocoena) is one of six Species of Porpoise. Researchers at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland have discovered that the local Bottlenose Dolphins attack and kill harbour porpoises without eating them due to competition for a decreasing food supply. ^[15]

Diet

Their diet consists mainly of small fish with occasional squid, crabs, shrimp, and other smaller animals. Squid are marine Cephalopods of the order Teuthida, which comprises around 300 species Crabs are decapod Crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" (βραχύ / brachy True shrimp are swimming decapod Crustaceans classified in the Infraorder Caridea, found widely around the world in both fresh Their cone-like teeth serve to grasp but not to chew food. When a shoal of fish is found dolphins work as a team to keep the fish close together and maximize the harvest. The SWARM Remote Weapon System (Stabilised Weapon And Reconnaissance Mount is a fully armored Remote weapon system designed and built by the Thales Group in They also search for fish alone, often bottom dwelling species. Sometimes dolphins will employ "fish whacking" whereby a fish is stunned (and sometimes thrown out of the water) with the fluke to make catching and eating the fish easier.

Perceived conflict of interactions between common Bottlenose Dolphins and coastal, small scale commercial fisheries has been reported in a number of Mediterranean areas. Common Bottlenose Dolphins are probably attracted to fishing nets activities because they make it easier for the dolphins to exploit a concentrated food source. ^[16]

Senses and communication

See also: Cetacean intelligence

The dolphin's search for food is aided by a form of echolocation similar to sonar: they locate objects by producing sounds and listening for the echo. Cetacean intelligence denotes the cognitive capabilities of the Cetacean order of mammals and especially the various species of Dolphin. Echolocation, also called biosonar, is the biological Sonar used by several Animals such as Dolphins Shrews most Bats Sonar (which started as an Acronym for sound navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses Sound propagation (usually underwater to navigate A broadband burst pulse of clicking sounds is emitted in a focused beam in front of the dolphin. To hear the returning echo they have two small ear openings behind the eyes but most sound waves are transmitted to the inner ear through the lower jaw. As the object of interest is approached the echo grows louder, and the dolphins adjust by decreasing the intensity of the emitted sounds. (This is in contrast to the technique used by bat echolocation and human sonar where the sensitivity of the sound receptor is attenuated. Sonar (which started as an Acronym for sound navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses Sound propagation (usually underwater to navigate ) As the animal approaches the target the interclick interval also decreases, as each click is usually produced after the round-trip travel time of the previous click is completed. Details of the dolphin's echolocation, such as signal strength, spectral qualities, discrimination abilities, etc. , have been well investigated by researchers. ^[17] Also, Pack & Herman demonstrated that Bottlenose Dolphins are able to extract shape information from their echolocative sense, suggesting that they are able to form an "echoic image" of their targets. ^[18]

Dolphins also have sharp eyesight. The eyes are located at the sides of the head and have a tapetum lucidum, or reflecting membrane at the back of the retina, which aids vision in dim light. The tapetum lucidum ( Latin: "bright tapestry" plural tapeta lucida) is a layer of tissue in the Eye of many Vertebrate animals that Their horseshoe-shaped double-slit pupil enables the dolphin to have good vision in both in-air and underwater viewing, despite the differences in density of these media. ^[19] When underwater the eyeball's lens serves to focus light, whereas in the in-air environment the typically bright light serves to contract the specialized pupil, resulting in sharpness from a smaller aperture (similar to a pinhole camera). A' pinhole camera' is a very simple Camera with no lens and a single very small Aperture.

By contrast their sense of smell is very poor, as would be expected since the blowhole, the analogue to the nose, is closed in the underwater environment, and opens only voluntarily for breathing. The olfactory nerves as well as the olfactory lobe in the brain are missing. Their sense of taste has not been well-studied, although dolphins have been demonstrated to be able to detect salty, sweet, bitter (quinine sulphate), and sour (citric acid) tastes. Anecdotally, some animals in captivity have been noted to have preferences for food fish types although it is not clear that this preference is mediated by taste.

Bottlenose Dolphins communicate with one another through squeaks, whistles, and body language. Examples of body language include leaping out of the water, snapping jaws, slapping tails on the surface of the water, and butting heads with one another. All of these gestures are a way for the dolphins to convey messages. ^[20] The sounds and gestures that Bottlenose Dolphins produce help keep track of other dolphins in the group and alert other dolphins to possible dangers and nearby food. They produce sounds using six air sacs near their blow hole (they lack vocal cords). The vocal folds, also known commonly as vocal cords, are composed of twin infoldings of Mucous membrane stretched horizontally across the Larynx. Each animal has a characteristic frequency-modulated narrow-band signature vocalization (signature whistle) which is uniquely identifying. Other communication uses about 30 distinguishable sounds, and although famously proposed by John Lilly in the 1950s, a "dolphin language" has not been found. John Cunningham Lilly ( January 6, 1915 &ndash September 30, 2001) was an American Physician, Psychoanalyst and However, Herman, Richards, & Wolz demonstrated the comprehension of an artificial language by two Bottlenose Dolphins (named Akeakamai and Phoenix) in the period of skepticism toward animal language following Herbert Terrace's critique. Louis Herman is a researcher in of dolphin sensory abilities dolphin cognition and humpback whales Akeakamai (c 1976 - November 2, 2003) was a female Atlantic Bottlenose dolphin, who along with a companion female dolphin named Animal language is the modeling of human language in non human animal systems ^[21]

Respiration and Sleep

The Bottlenose dolphin has a single blowhole located on the dorsal surface of the head consisting of a hole and a muscular flap. The flap is closed during muscle relaxation and opens during contraction. ^[22] A dolphin is able to exchange 80% or more of its lung air with each breathe; constrastly, humans are only able to exchange 17%. The exhale-inhale cycle lasts approximately 0. 3 seconds. The Bottlenose dolphin typically rises to the surface to breathe through its blowhole 2-3 times per minute;^[23] if necessary, it has the ability to remain submerged for up to 20 minutes. ^[24] As a direct result of the voluntary breathing requirement scientists have determined that during the sleeping cycle one brain hemisphere remains active while the other hemisphere shuts down. ^[25] The sleeping cycle lasts for approximately 8 hours during each 24 hour period, in increments of several minutes (or less) to several hours. During the sleeping cycle dolphins remain near the surface swimming slowly or "logging", occasionally closing one eye. ^[26]

Reproduction

The male has two slits on the underside of the body: one concealing the penis and one further behind for the anus. The penis (plural penises, penes The anus is an opening at the opposite end of an Animal 's Digestive tract from the Mouth. The female has one genital slit, housing the vagina and the anus. A sex organ, or primary sexual characteristic, as narrowly defined is any of the anatomical parts of the body which are involved in sexual reproduction and constitute The vagina (from Latin, literally " Sheath " or " Scabbard " is a fibromuscular tubular tract leading from the Uterus A mammary slit is positioned on either side of the female's genital slit.

Courtship behaviour of the male includes clinging along to the female, posing for the female, stroking, rubbing, nuzzling, mouthing, jaw clapping, and yelping. Copulation is preceded by lengthy foreplay; then the two animals arrange belly to belly, and the penis extends out of its slit and is inserted into the vagina. Sexual intercourse, in its biological sense is the act in which the male reproductive organ (in humans and other higher animals enters the female reproductive tract The act lasts only 10-30 seconds, but it is repeated numerous times with a several minutes break in between each.

The average gestation period is 12 months. Gestation is the carrying of an Embryo or Fetus inside a Female Viviparous Animal. The young are born in shallow water, sometimes assisted by a "midwife" (which may be male). A single calf is born, about 1 m (3 ft) long at birth.

To speed up the nursing process, the mother can eject milk from her mammary glands. Mammary glands are the organs that in Mammals produce Milk for the sustenance of the young There are two slits, one on either side of the genital slit, each housing one nipple. In its most general form a nipple is a Structure from which a fluid emanates The calf is nursed for 12 to 18 months.

The young live closely with their mother for up to 6 years; the males are not involved in the raising of their mother's subsequent offspring. The females become sexually mature at age 5-12, the males a bit later, at age 9-13.

Janet Mann, a professor of biology and psychology at Georgetown University, argues that the strong personal behaviour among male dolphin calves is about bond formation and benefits the species in an evolutionary context. She cites studies showing that these dolphins later in life as adults are inseparable, and the male bonds forged earlier in life work together for protection as well as locating females to reproduce with. ^[27]

Male Bottlenose Dolphins have been observed working in pairs or larger groups to follow and/or restrict the movement of a female for weeks at a time, waiting for her to become sexually receptive. The same dolphins have also been observed engaging in ardent sexual play with each other.

Intelligence

Cognition

Cognitive abilities investigated in the dolphin include concept formation, sensory skills, and the use of mental representation of dolphins. Cognition is a concept used in different ways by different disciplines but is generally accepted to mean the process of awareness or thought The term "concept" is traced back to 1554–60 ( l conceptum - something conceived but what is today termed "the classical theory of concepts" is the theory of Aristotle Such research has been ongoing from the late 1970s through to the present, and include the specific areas of: acoustic mimicry, behavioural mimicry (inter- and intra-specific), comprehension of novel sequences in an artificial language (including non finite state grammars as well as novel anomalous sequences), memory, monitoring of self behaviours (including reporting on these, as well as avoiding or repeating them), reporting on the presence and absence of objects, object categorization, discrimination and matching (identity matching to sample, delayed matching to sample, arbitrary matching to sample, matching across echolocation and vision, reporting that no identity match exists, etc. Animal language is the modeling of human language in non human animal systems In Psychology, memory is an organism's ability to store retain and subsequently retrieve information In Psychology, displacement is an Unconscious Defense mechanism whereby the mind redirects affects from an object felt to be dangerous or unacceptable Categorization is the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated and understood. Echolocation, also called biosonar, is the biological Sonar used by several Animals such as Dolphins Shrews most Bats In Psychology, visual perception is the ability to interpret information from Visible light reaching the Eyes The resulting Perception is also ), synchronous creative behaviours between two animals, comprehension of symbols for various body parts, comprehension of the pointing gesture and gaze (as made by dolphins or humans), problem solving, echolocative eavesdropping, attention, mirror self-recognition, and more. Attention is the Cognitive process of selectively concentrating on one aspect of the environment while ignoring other things The mirror test is a measure of Self-awareness developed by Gordon Gallup Jr Recent research has shown that dolphins are capable of comprehending numerical values. In an experiment where a dolphin was shown two panels with a various number of dots of different size and position, the dolphin was able to touch the panel with a greater number of dots, much more rapidly than many human beings could do.

Tool use and culture

In 1997, tool use was described in Bottlenose Dolphins in Shark Bay. A dolphin will stick a marine sponge on its rostrum, presumably to protect it when searching for food in the sandy sea bottom. The sponges or poriferans (from Latin porus "pore" and ferre "to bear" are Animals ^[28] The behavior has only been observed in this bay, and is almost exclusively shown by females. This is the only known case of tool use in marine mammals outside of Sea Otters. The sea otter ( Enhydra lutris) is a Marine mammal native to the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. An elaborate study in 2005 showed that mothers most likely teach the behaviour to their daughters. ^[29] Subsets of populations in Mauritania are known to engage in interspecific cooperative fishing with human fishermen. Mauritania (موريتانيا Mūrītāniyā officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, is a country The dolphins drive a school of fish towards the shore where humans await with their nets. In the confusion of casting nets, the dolphins catch a large number of fish as well. Intraspecific cooperative foraging techniques have also been observed, and some propose that these behaviours are transmitted through cultural means. Rendell & Whitehead have proposed a structure for the study of culture in cetaceans,^[30] although this view has been controversial (e. g. see Premack & Hauser).

Natural predators

Large shark species such as the tiger shark, the dusky shark, and the bull shark prey on the Bottlenose Dolphin, especially the young. Sharks ( Superorder Selachimorpha) are a type of Fish with a full cartilaginous Skeleton and a highly streamlined body The tiger shark, Galeocerdo cuvier, the fourth largest predatory Shark (after the Great white shark, Greenland shark, and Pacific The dusky shark, Carcharhinus obscurus, is one of the larger species of Shark, reaching 350 kg The bull shark, Carcharhinus leucas, also known as the bull whaler, Zambezi shark or unofficially known as Zambi in Africa and Nicaragua However, the dolphin is far from helpless against its predators and it has been known to fight back through charges; indeed, dolphin 'mobbing' behavior of sharks can occasionally prove fatal for the shark. Even a single adult dolphin is dangerous prey for a shark of similar size. Certain (but not all) orcas may also prey on dolphins, but this seems very rare. The Orca or Killer Whale ( Orcinus orca) less commonly Blackfish or Seawolf, is the largest species of the Oceanic dolphin family While certain orcas that eat other mammals prey on the dolphin, other non-mammal eating orcas have been seen swimming with dolphins.

Swimming in pods allows dolphins to better defend themselves against predators. Bottlenose Dolphins either use complex evasive strategies to outswim their predators or they will batter the predator to death. Bottlenose Dolphins will also aid their injured by holding injured dolphins above water for air. ^[31]

Conservation

Bottlenose Dolphins are not endangered. Their future is currently foreseen to be stable because of their abundance and high adaptability. However, some specific populations are threatened due to various environmental changes. For example, the population in the Moray Firth in Scotland is estimated to consist of around 150 animals and to be declining by around 6% per year due to the impact of harassment and traumatic death, water pollution and reduction in food availability. The Moray Firth ( Scottish Gaelic: An Cuan Moireach or Linne Mhoireibh) is a roughly triangular Inlet (or Firth) of the North Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. Less local climate change such as increasing water temperature may also play a role. Climate change is any long-term significant change in the “average weather” that a given region experiences ^[32]

In U.S. waters, hunting and harassing of marine mammals is forbidden in almost all circumstances. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The international trade in dolphins is also tightly controlled.

High levels of metal contaminants have been measured in Bottlenose Dolphin tissues in many areas of the globe. A recent study found very high levels of cadmium and mercury in Bottlenose Dolphins from South Australia. ^[33]

Bottlenose Dolphins and humans

Bottlenose Dolphins are still occasionally killed in dolphin drive hunts for their meat or because they compete for fish. whaling Dolphin drive hunting, also called dolphin drive fishing, is a method of Hunting Dolphins and occasionally other small Cetaceans by driving Bottlenose Dolphins (and several other dolphin species) often travel together with tuna, and since the dolphins are much easier to spot than the tuna, fishermen commonly encircle dolphins to catch tuna, sometimes resulting in the death of dolphins. Dolphins are Marine mammals that are closely related to Whales and Porpoises There are almost forty species of dolphin in seventeen genera. Tuna, are several Species of ocean-dwelling Fish in the family Scombridae, mostly in the genus Thunnus. This has led to boycotts of tuna products and a "dolphin-safe" label for tuna caught with methods that do not endanger dolphins. A boycott is a form of Consumer activism involving the act of voluntarily abstaining from using buying or dealing with someone or some other organization as an expression of

Bottlenose Dolphins (as well as other dolphins) are often trained to perform in dolphin shows. Some animal welfare activists claim that the dolphins there are not adequately challenged and that the pools are too small; others maintain that the dolphins are well cared for and enjoy living and working with humans. Animal welfare refers to the viewpoint that it is morally acceptable for humans to use nonhuman animals for food in animal research, as clothing and in entertainment

Eight Bottlenose Dolphins that were washed out of their aquarium pool during the devastating August 2005 strike of Hurricane Katrina were later found alive by rescue forces, huddled together in coastal waters near their former home in Gulfport, Mississippi, USA. An aquarium (plural aquariums or aquaria) is a Vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which Water -dwelling Plants Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was the costliest hurricane, as well as one of the five deadliest in the history of the United States Gulfport is the name of two cities in the United States of America: Gulfport Florida Gulfport Mississippi There Mississippi ( is a state located in the Deep South of the United States The United States of America —commonly referred to as the ^[34]

Direct interaction with dolphins is used in the therapy of severely handicapped children and adults, and many report it as having a highly positive effect.

The military of the United States and Russia train Bottlenose Dolphins as military dolphins for wartime tasks such as locating sea mines or detecting and marking enemy divers. The United States Armed Forces are the overall unified military forces of the United States The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (UTC (Вооружённые Си́лы Росси́йской Федера́ции Transliteration Vooruzhyónniye Síly Rossíyskoy Federátsii A military dolphin is a Cetacean trained for military uses The United States and Russian militaries have trained and employed Oceanic dolphins The USA's program is the U.S. Navy Marine Mammal Program, located in San Diego, California. The US Navy Marine Mammal Program ( NMMP) is a program administered by the U

In the town of Laguna in south Brazil, a pod of Bottlenose Dolphins is known to drive fish towards fishermen who stand at the beach in shallow waters. Other Laguna has a few schools or a collegiate a high school churches and squares |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld One dolphin will then roll over, which the fishermen take as sign to throw out their nets. The dolphins feed on the escaping fish. The dolphins were not trained for this behaviour; the collaboration has been going on at least since 1847. Similar cooperative fisheries also exist in Africa, and have been reported through recorded history.

A dolphin with an extra set of fins was found in Wakayama, Japan on October 28 2006. Scientists are researching and have found that they may be the remains of hind legs. The dolphin is alive and will go through X-Ray and DNA tests. ^[35]

In New Zealand there was a very famous dolphin by the name of Opo or her long name Opo the Dolphin. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island Opo was a Bottlenose dolphin who became famous throughout New Zealand during the summer of 1955-56 for playing with the children of the small town of Opononi on the She was friendly to the locals and when she died they honoured her with a statue of her, including a child on her back and she was also honoured with a public funeral. There is also a NZ folk song about her. Maori believed that she was a messenger from one of the first people who discovered New Zealand. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island

Bottlenose Dolphins in popular culture

• The popular television show Flipper, created by Ivan Tors, portrayed a Bottlenose Dolphin in a friendly relationship with two boys, Sandy and Bud; a kind of seagoing Lassie, Flipper understood English unusually well and was a marked hero: "Go tell Dad we're in trouble, Flipper! Hurry!" The show's theme song contains the lyric no one you see / is smarter than he. Flipper is an American Television program first Broadcast on NBC from September 18, 1964 until April 15 Ivan Tors ( June 12, 1916 - June 4, 1983) was a Hungarian Playwright, Screenwriter, and film Lassie is an Emmy Award -winning American Television series that follows the adventures of a female rough collie named Lassie The television show was based on a 1963 film, and remade as a feature film in 1996 starring Elijah Wood and Paul Hogan, as well as a television series running from 1995-2000 starring Jessica Alba. Flipper is an American feature film (1963 written by Ricou Browning andJack Cowden and directed by James B Flipper is a 1996 Remake of the 1963 film of the same name, starring Elijah Wood. Elijah Jordan Wood (born January 28 1981) is an American Actor. Paul Hogan AM (born October 8, 1939) is an Australian Golden Globe -winning actor and comedian most famous for his role as Jessica Marie Alba (born April 28 1981 is an American television and film Actress. ^[36]

• Ensign Darwin was a Bottlenose Dolphin crew member of seaQuest on the television series seaQuest DSV. seaQuest DSV was an American Science fiction television series created by Rockne S Thanks to an invention by Lucas Wolenczak (Jonathan Brandis), Darwin could communicate verbally with the crew. Lucas Wolenczak was a character on the television series SeaQuest DSV, played by Jonathan Brandis. Jonathan Gregory Brandis ( April 13, 1976 — November 12, 2003) was an American Actor, director, and Screenwriter Darwin was not played by a real dolphin; it was an animatronic.

• Bottlenose Dolphins have appeared in the film adaptation of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy as well as the novel and one of its sequels, So Long, and Thanks For All the Fish. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a science fiction comedy series So Long and Thanks for All the Fish ( 1984, ISBN 0-345-39183-7 is the fourth book of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series written The dolphins are very intelligent creatures who tried in vain to warn humans of the impending destruction of Earth before making their own escape. However, their behaviour was misinterpreted as playful acrobatics. Acrobatics (from Greek Akros, high and bat, walking is one of the Performing arts, and is also practiced as a Sport. In particular, dolphins are noted to be the second most intelligent species on the planet Earth, ahead of humans, who ranked third.

• The science fiction video game series Ecco the Dolphin, published by Sega, stars Ecco, a young adult male Bottlenose Dolphin. A video game is a Game that involves interaction with a User interface to generate visual feedback on a video device. Ecco the Dolphin is the collective name given to a series of Action-adventure Science fiction Video games developed by Novotrade International is a multinational Video game Software and Hardware development company and a former Home computer The series also features societies of sapient cetaceans, time travel, and malevolent space aliens.

• Zeus and Roxanne, an HBO TV movie about a female Bottlenose Dolphin (Roxanne) and a male dog (Zeus) becoming friends. Zeus and Roxanne is a 1997 film directed by George T Miller. The film was rated PG by the MPAA for mild thematic elements and ran The film stars Steve Guttenberg and Kathleen Quinlan. Steven Robert "Steve" Guttenberg (born August 24 1958) is an American film and television Actor. Kathleen Denise Quinlan (born November 19, 1954) is an Academy Award -nominated and Golden Globe-nominated American actress mostly seen

• In David Brin's series of Uplift Universe novels, one of the two species that humans have uplifted to sentience are the Bottlenose Dolphin (the other species is the chimpanzee). Glen David Brin, PhD (born October 6, 1950) is an American scientist and award-winning author of Science fiction. The Uplift Universe is a Fictional universe created by Science fiction writer David Brin. In Science fiction, biological uplift is a term for the act of an advanced Civilization helping the development of another Species. Sentience is the ability to feel or perceive subjectively. It is an important concept in the philosophy of Animal rights, in buddhist philosophy and in Chimpanzee (often shortened to chimp) is the common name for the two extant Species of Apes in the Genus Pan. Numerous Bottlenose Dolphins are central characters in his book Startide Rising. Startide Rising is a 1983 Science fiction novel by David Brin and the second book of six set in his Uplift Universe (preceded

• Dolphins are some of the primary characters in Anne McCaffrey's "The Dolphins of Pern" book, one of the books in the "Dragonriders of Pern" series (published by Del Rey). Anne Inez McCaffrey (born April 1, 1926) is an American Science fiction Author best known for her Dragonriders The Dolphins of Pern is a Science fiction novel in the Dragonriders of Pern series by Anne McCaffrey. The Dragonriders of Pern is an extensive Science fiction / Fantasy series of novels and short stories primarily written by Anne McCaffrey. In the novel, Dolphins have been treated by a process to enhance intelligence slightly and allow them to communicate vocally with humans before coming with the colonists to the planet Pern. Pern is a Fictional Planet in the universe created by Science fiction writer Anne McCaffrey for her Dragonriders of Pern Dolphins are also mentioned the books "Dragonsdawn" and "Chronicles of Pern: First Fall" in the same series.

• In Treehouse of Horror XI, Segment 3 in The Simpsons, Dolphins reveal to humans that they could talk and that they once lived on land, but were driven into the sea by humans. " Treehouse of Horror XI " is the first episode of The Simpsons ' twelfth season, as well as the eleventh Halloween episode They later successfully drive the humans (the townsfolk of Springfield) into the sea while they took over dry land.

Factual descriptions of the Bottlenose Dolphin date back into antiquity - the writings of Aristotle, Oppian and Pliny the Elder all mention the species. Aristotle (Greek Aristotélēs) (384 BC – 322 BC was a Greek philosopher a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. Oppian or Oppianus (Οππιανος was the name of the authors of two (or three didactic poems in Greek Hexameters formerly identified but now generally regarded Gaius or Caius Plinius Secundus, ( AD 23 – August 25, AD 79 better known as Pliny the Elder, was an ancient Author ^[37]

See also

• Cetacean intelligence
• Dolphinarium
• Audiograms in mammals

References

General references

External links

• Tursiops.org: Current Cetacean-related news
• Tursiops truncatus (Bottlenose dolphin) Photo Gallery
• ARKive Photographs, video.

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