The Bottlenose Dolphin is the most common and well-known dolphin, recent molecular studies showing it is in fact two species, Common Bottlenose Dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), and Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin (T. aduncus). Image File history File links Broom_icon. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 549 pixels Full resolution (1679 × 1153 pixel, file size: 987 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Cropped version of a picture from the English Wikipedia, http://en. ... The Moray Firth is a roughly triangular area of the North Sea, north and east of Inverness. ... Motto (Latin) No one provokes me with impunity Wha daur meddle wi me?(Scots)1 Anthem (Multiple unofficial anthems) Scotlands location in Europe Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official languages English, Gaelic, Scots3 Government Constitutional monarchy  -  Queen Queen Elizabeth II  -  Prime Minister Tony Blair MP  -  First Minister Jack McConnell... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The conservation status of a species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species continuing to survive either in the present day or the future. ... The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (also known as the IUCN Red List and Red Data List), created in 1963, is the worlds most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of plant and animal species and can be found here. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is a method by which biologists group and categorize species of organisms. ... Animalia redirects here. ... Typical Classes See below Chordates (phylum Chordata) are a group of animals that includes the vertebrates, together with several closely related invertebrates. ... Subclasses Subclass Allotheria* Order Docodonta (extinct) Order Multituberculata (extinct) Order Palaeoryctoides (extinct) Order Triconodonta (extinct) Order Volaticotheria (extinct) Subclass Prototheria Order Monotremata Subclass Theria Infraclass Trituberculata (extinct) Infraclass Metatheria Infraclass Eutheria The mammals are the class of vertebrate animals characterized by the production of milk in females for the nourishment... Suborders Mysticeti Odontoceti Archaeoceti (extinct) (see text for families) The order Cetacea (IPA: , L. cetus, whale) includes whales, dolphins and porpoises. ... Genera See text Oceanic dolphins are the members of the Delphinidae family of cetaceans. ... In biology, binomial nomenclature is the formal method of naming species. ... George Montagu George Montagu (1753 - June 20, 1815) was an English naturalist. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1357x628, 35 KB) Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1. ... Genera See article below. ...

It inhabits warm and temperate seas worldwide and may be found in all but the Arctic and the Antarctic Oceans. The Arctic Ocean, located in the northern hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region, is the smallest of the worlds five oceans and the shallowest. ... The Southern Ocean is the body of water encircling the continent of Antarctica. ...

Description

Bottlenose Dolphins are grey, varying from dark grey at the top near the dorsal fin to very light grey and almost white or maybe even a pinkish color at the underside. This makes them harder to see both from above and below when swimming. The elongated upper and lower jaws form what is called the rostrum and give the animals their name of bottlenose. The real nose however is the blowhole on top of the head, and the nasal septum is visible when the blowhole is open. Their face shows a characteristic "smile". The "smile" does not mean that they are happy. They are unable to move their jaw in any other position. Dorsal Fin of the Orca A dorsal fin is a fin located on the backs of fishes, whales, dolphins and porpoises. ... In biology, a blowhole is the hole at the top of a whales 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 metres (6 to 13 ft) and in weight from 150 to 650 kilograms (330 to 1430 lb)^[2], however in most parts of the world the adult's length is about 2.5 m (8 ft) and adult weight ranges form 200 to 300 kg (440 to 660 lb), with males being slightly longer and considerably heavier than females on average. The size of the dolphin appears to vary considerably with habitat. Most research in this area has been restricted to the North Atlantic Ocean, where researchers ^[3] have identified two ecotypes. Those dolphins in warmer, shallower waters tend to have a smaller body than their cousins in cooler pelagic waters. For example a survey of animals in the Moray Firth in Scotland, the world's northernmost resident population, recorded an average adult length of just under 4 m (13 ft). This compares with a 2.5 m (8 ft) average in a population of Florida. Those in colder waters also have a fattier composition and blood more suited to deep-diving. The metre (or meter, see spelling differences) is a measure of length. ... A foot (plural: feet or foot;[1] symbol or abbreviation: ft or, sometimes, ′ – a prime) is a unit of length, in a number of different systems, including English units, Imperial units, and United States customary units. ... The U.S. National Prototype Kilogram, which currently serves as the primary standard for measuring mass in the U.S. It was assigned to the United States in 1889 and is periodically recertified and traceable to the primary international standard, The Kilogram, held at the Bureau International des Poids et... The pound (abbreviations: lb or, sometimes in the United States, #) is a unit of mass in a number of different systems, including various systems of units of mass that formed part of English units, Imperial units, and United States customary units. ... “Atlantic” redirects here. ... An ecotype of a species is subgroup of members of that species characterized by the ecological surroundings it inhabits. ... The Moray Firth is a roughly triangular area of the North Sea, north and east of Inverness. ... Motto (Latin) No one provokes me with impunity Wha daur meddle wi me?(Scots)1 Anthem (Multiple unofficial anthems) Scotlands location in Europe Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official languages English, Gaelic, Scots3 Government Constitutional monarchy  -  Queen Queen Elizabeth II  -  Prime Minister Tony Blair MP  -  First Minister Jack McConnell... This article is about the U.S. State. ...

A Bottlenose Dolphin at SeaWorld San Antonio in San Antonio, Texas, USA

The flukes (lobes of the tail) and dorsal fin are formed of dense connective tissue and don't contain bones or muscle. The animal propels forward by moving the flukes up and down. The pectoral flippers (at the sides of the body) serve 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). In fact, recently, in Japan, a Bottlenose Dolphin was discovered to have two additional pectoral fins, or "hind legs", at the tail, appearing to be about the size of a human's pair of hands. ^[4] Scientists believe that a mutation must have caused the ancient trait to reassert itself. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 543 KB) dolphins are so sweet and pretty A Tursiops truncatus Seaworld, San Antonio, Texas, USA. The photo is number 206725 at stock. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 543 KB) dolphins are so sweet and pretty A Tursiops truncatus Seaworld, San Antonio, Texas, USA. The photo is number 206725 at stock. ... SeaWorld San Antonio is a 250-acre marine-life theme park located in the Westover Hills area of San Antonio, Texas. ... Nickname: Alamo City; River City Location in the state of Texas Coordinates: Counties Bexar County Government  - Mayor Phil Hardberger Area  - City  412. ... Look up Fluke in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Dorsal Fin of the Orca A dorsal fin is a fin located on the backs of fishes, whales, dolphins and porpoises. ... Connective tissue is one of the four types of tissue in traditional classifications (the others being epithelial, muscle, and nervous tissue. ... Fish anatomy is primarily governed by the physical characteristics of water, which is much denser than air, holds a relatively small amount of dissolved oxygen, and absorbs light more than does air. ... In biology, homology is any similarity between structures that is due to their shared ancestry. ... Suborders Mysticeti Odontoceti Archaeoceti (extinct) (see text for families) The order Cetacea (IPA: , L. cetus, whale) includes whales, dolphins and porpoises. ...

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
• 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.

The following are sometimes recognized as subspecies of T. truncatus: In zoology, as in other branches of biology, subspecies is the rank immediately subordinate to a species. ...

• 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.

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.^[6] NASA satellite image of the Black Sea Map of the Black Sea The Black Sea is an inland sea between southeastern Europe and Anatolia that is actually a distant arm of the Atlantic Ocean by way of the Mediterranean Sea. ... The World Conservation Union or International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) is an international organization dedicated to natural resource conservation. ... The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (also known as the IUCN Red List and Red Data List), created in 1963, is the worlds most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of plant and animal species. ...

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.^[7] The taxonomic situation of these animals is likely to remain in flux for some time to come. Species Stenella attenuata Stenella frontalis Stenella longirostris Stenella clymene Stenella coeruleoalba Stenella is a genus in the dolphin family. ... Binomial name Stenella frontalis Cuvier, 1829 Atlantic Spotted Dolphin range Synonyms Stenella plagiodon Cope, 1866 The Atlantic Spotted Dolphin (Stenella frontalis) is a dolphin found in the Gulf Stream of the North Atlantic Ocean. ...

Behaviour

A Bottlenose Dolphin attacks and kills a Harbour Porpoise at Chanonry Point, Scotland

Every 5-8 minutes, the dolphins need to rise to the surface to breathe through their blowhole, though they generally breathe more frequently - up to several times per minute. Their sleep is thus very light; some scientists have suggested that the two halves of their brains take turns in sleeping and waking. It has also been suggested that they have tiny periods of 'microsleep'. Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 598 pixels Full resolution (1314 × 983 pixel, file size: 550 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Peter Asprey, Harbour Porpoise attacked and killed by adult male bottlenose dolphin. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 598 pixels Full resolution (1314 × 983 pixel, file size: 550 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Peter Asprey, Harbour Porpoise attacked and killed by adult male bottlenose dolphin. ... Binomial name Phocoena phocoena Linnaeus, 1758 Harbour Porpoise range The Harbour Porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) is one of six species of porpoise, and so one of about eighty cetacean species. ... Chanonry Point Adult female Bottlenose and two young Summer Time At Chanonry Point Dolphin Close to Chanonry Point Dolphins Jumping as seen from Chanonry Point Chanonry Point lies at the end of Chanonry Ness, a spit of land extending into the Moray Firth between Fortrose and Rosemarkie on the Black... Motto (Latin) No one provokes me with impunity Wha daur meddle wi me?(Scots)1 Anthem (Multiple unofficial anthems) Scotlands location in Europe Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official languages English, Gaelic, Scots3 Government Constitutional monarchy  -  Queen Queen Elizabeth II  -  Prime Minister Tony Blair MP  -  First Minister Jack McConnell... A microsleep is a period of sleep lasting no more than a few seconds up to a minute. ...

Bottlenose Dolphins normally live in groups called pods, usually containing up to 12 animals. These are long-term social units. 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.

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. Three lifeguards, swimming 100 m (328 ft) off the coast near Whangarei, were reportedly approached by a 3 m (10 ft) Great White Shark. 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. ^[8] Whangarei (the initial consonant is pronounced F as in fa-nga-ray) is the northernmost city in New Zealand and the regional capital of Northland Region. ... Binomial name Carcharodon carcharias (Linnaeus, 1758) Range (in blue) The great white shark, Carcharodon carcharias, also known as white pointer, white shark, or white death, is an exceptionally large lamniforme shark found in coastal surface waters in all major oceans. ...

Dolphins are predators however, and they also show aggressive behaviours. This includes fights among males for rank and access to females, as well as aggression towards sharks, certain (but not all) orcas, and other smaller species of dolphins. Male dolphins, during the mating season, compete very vigorously with each other through showing 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. 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.^[9] This snapping turtle is trying to make a meal of a Canada goose, but the goose is too wary. ... Orders Carcharhiniformes Heterodontiformes Hexanchiformes Lamniformes Orectolobiformes Pristiophoriformes Squaliformes Squatiniformes Symmoriida(extinct) Shark (superorder Selachimorpha) are fish with a full cartilaginous skeleton[1] and a streamlined body. ... Binomial name Orcinus orca Linnaeus, 1758 Orca range (in blue) The Orca or Killer Whale (Orcinus orca) is the largest species of the oceanic dolphin family (Delphinidae). ... Motto (Latin) No one provokes me with impunity Wha daur meddle wi me?(Scots)1 Anthem (Multiple unofficial anthems) Scotlands location in Europe Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official languages English, Gaelic, Scots3 Government Constitutional monarchy  -  Queen Queen Elizabeth II  -  Prime Minister Tony Blair MP  -  First Minister Jack McConnell... In sociology and biology, infanticide is the practice of intentionally causing the death of an infant of a given species, by members of the same species - often by the mother. ... Binomial name Phocoena phocoena Linnaeus, 1758 Harbour Porpoise range The Harbour Porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) is one of six species of porpoise, and so one of about eighty cetacean species. ...

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

Diet

Their diet consists mainly of small fish, occasionally also squid, crabs, shrimp, and other smaller animals. Their cone-like teeth serve to grasp but not to chew food. When a shoal of fish has been found, the animals work as a team to keep the fish close together and maximize the harvest. They also search for fish alone, often bottom dwelling species. Sometimes they 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. Suborders Myopsina Oegopsina Squid are a large, diverse group of marine cephalopods. ... Superfamilies Dromiacea Homolodromioidea Dromioidea Homoloidea Eubrachyura Raninoidea Cyclodorippoidea Dorippoidea Calappoidea Leucosioidea Majoidea Hymenosomatoidea Parthenopoidea Retroplumoidea Cancroidea Portunoidea Bythograeoidea Xanthoidea Bellioidea Potamoidea Pseudothelphusoidea Gecarcinucoidea Cryptochiroidea Pinnotheroidea * Ocypodoidea * Grapsoidea * An asterisk (*) marks the crabs included in the clade Thoracotremata. ... Superfamilies Alpheoidea Atyoidea Bresilioidea Campylonotoidea Crangonoidea Galatheacaridoidea Nematocarcinoidea Oplophoroidea Palaemonoidea Pandaloidea Pasiphaeoidea Procaridoidea Processoidea Psalidopodoidea Stylodactyloidea True shrimp are swimming, decapod crustaceans classified in the infraorder Caridea, found widely around the world in both fresh and salt water. ... A group of several species of fishes which swims and congregate together. ...

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. The broadband burst pulse clicking sounds are emitted in a focused beam towards the front of the animal. 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; 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.) 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. Details of the dolphin's echolocation, such as signal strength, spectral qualities, discrimination abilities, etc., have been well investigated by researchers. ^[10] 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.^[11] 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 mammals such as bats, dolphins and whales. ... The F70 type frigates (here, La Motte-Picquet) are fitted with VDS (Variable Depth Sonar) type DUBV43 or DUBV43C towed sonars SONAR (SOund Navigation And Ranging) â€” or sonar â€” is a technique that uses sound propagation under water (primarily) to navigate, communicate or to detect other vessels. ... Suborders Megachiroptera Microchiroptera See text for families. ... The F70 type frigates (here, La Motte-Picquet) are fitted with VDS (Variable Depth Sonar) type DUBV43 or DUBV43C towed sonars SONAR (SOund Navigation And Ranging) â€” or sonar â€” is a technique that uses sound propagation under water (primarily) to navigate, communicate or to detect other vessels. ...

They also have sharp eyesight. The eyes are located at the sides of the head and have a tapetum lucidum which aids in dim light. 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.^[12] 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 small-aperture (similar to a pinhole camera). tapetum lucidum in a calf eye, with the retina hanging down The tapetum lucidum (Latin: bright carpet) is a reflecting layer immediately behind, and sometimes within, the retina of the eye of many vertebrates (though not humans); it serves to reflect light back to the retina, increasing the quantity of...

By contrast, their sense of smell is very poor, as would be expected as 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. The 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. ^[13]

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. Bottlenose Dolphins produce sounds using six air sacs near their blow hole (they lack vocal cords). 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. However, Herman, Richards, & Wolz demonstrated the comprehension of an artificial language by two Bottlenose Dolphins (named Akeakamai and Phoenix) in the period of scepticism toward animal language following Herbert Terrace's critique.^[14] Laryngoscopic view of the vocal folds. ... John Lilly John Cunningham Lilly (January 6, 1915 – September 30, 2001) was an American physician, psychoanalyst and writer. ... This does not cite its references or sources. ... Louis Herman is a researcher in of dolphin sensory abilities, dolphin cognition, and humpback whales. ... Akeakamai was a female Atlantic bottlenose dolphin, who along with a companion female dolphin named Phoenix, were the subjects Louis Hermans animal language studies at the Kewalo Basin Marine Mammal Laboratory in Honolulu, Hawaii. ... Animal language is the modeling of human language in non human animal systems. ...

Reproduction

Mother and juvenile Bottlenose Dolphins head to the seafloor.

The male has two slits on the underside of the body: one concealing the penis and one further behind for the anus. The female has one genital slit, housing the vagina and the anus. A mammary slit is positioned on either side of the female's genital slit. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1220x1792, 1664 KB) Mother and juvenile bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) head to the seafloor. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1220x1792, 1664 KB) Mother and juvenile bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) head to the seafloor. ... The penis (plural penises, penes) is an external male sexual organ. ... Female Human Anatomy Male Human Anatomy This article is about the bodily orifice. ... A sex organ, or primary sexual characteristic, narrowly defined, is any of those parts of the body (which are not always bodily organs according to the strict definition) which are involved in sexual reproduction and constitute the reproductive system in an complex organism; namely: Male: penis (notably the glans penis... The vagina, (from Latin, literally sheath or scabbard ) is the tubular tract leading from the uterus to the exterior of the body in female placental mammals and marsupials, or to the cloaca in female birds, monotremes, and some reptiles. ...

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. The act lasts only 10-30 seconds, but it is repeated numerous times with a several minutes break in between each. A pair of lions copulating in the Maasai Mara, Kenya. ...

The average gestation period is 12 months. 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. Gestation is the carrying of an embryo or fetus inside a female viviparous animal. ...

To speed up the nursing process, the mother can eject milk from her mammary glands. There are two slits, one on either side of the genital slit, each housing one nipple. The calf is nursed for 12 to 18 months. Mammary glands are the organs that, in the female mammal, produce milk for the sustenance of the young. ... Typical human female nipple and areola. ...

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 10-12.

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 in a sense bisexual, and the male bonds forged earlier in life work together for protection as well as locating females to reproduce with.^[15]

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 pairs 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. 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.), 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. 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. Some researchers include Louis Herman, Mark Xitco, John Gory, Stan Kuczaj, Lori Marino, Diana Reiss, Adam Pack, John C. Lilly and many others. Look up Cognition in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A concept is an abstract idea or a mental symbol, typically associated with a corresponding representation in language or symbology, that denotes all of the objects in a given category or class of entities, interactions, phenomena, or relationships between them. ... Animal language is the modeling of human language in non human animal systems. ... In psychology, memory is an organisms ability to store, retain, and subsequently recall information. ... In psychology, the term displacement is an unconscious defence mechanism, whereby the mind redirects emotion from a dangerous object to a safe object. ... For Wikipedias categorization projects, see Wikipedia:Categorization. ... Echolocation, also called Biosonar, is the biological sonar used by several mammals such as bats, dolphins and whales. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Look up Attention in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The mirror-recognition test for self-awareness tests an animals ability to recognize itself as itself when looking in a mirror. ... Louis Herman is a researcher in of dolphin sensory abilities, dolphin cognition, and humpback whales. ... John Lilly John Cunningham Lilly (January 6, 1915 – September 30, 2001) was an American physician, psychoanalyst and writer. ...

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.^[16] 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. An elaborate study in 2005 showed that mothers most likely teach the behaviour to their daughters.^[17] Subsets of populations in Mauritania are known to engage in interspecific cooperative fishing with human fishermen. 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,^[18] although this view has been controversial (e.g. see Premack & Hauser). DIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Italic text ... Classes Calcarea Hexactinellida Demospongiae The sponges or poriferans (from Latin porus pore and ferre to bear) are animals of the phylum Porifera. ... Binomial name Enhydra lutris (Linnaeus, 1758) The Sea Otter (Enhydra lutris) is a large otter native to the North Pacific, from northern Japan and Kamchatka west across the Aleutian Islands south to California. ...

Natural predators

Large shark species such as the tiger shark, the dusky shark, and the bull shark prey on the Bottlenose Dolphin. However, the dolphin is far from helpless against its predators and it has been known to fight back through charges; indeed, dolphin 'mobbing' behaviour of sharks can occasionally prove fatal for the shark. Certain (but not all) orcas may also prey on dolphins, but this seems very rare. While certain Orcas that eat other mammals prey on the dolphin, other non-mammal eating Orcas have been seen swimming with dolphins. Orders Carcharhiniformes Heterodontiformes Hexanchiformes Lamniformes Orectolobiformes Pristiophoriformes Squaliformes Squatiniformes Symmoriida(extinct) Shark (superorder Selachimorpha) are fish with a full cartilaginous skeleton[1] and a streamlined body. ... Binomial name Galeocerdo cuvier Péron & Lesueur 1822 Tiger shark range The tiger shark, Galeocerdo cuvier, one of the largest sharks, is the only member of the genus Galeocerdo. ... Binomial name Carcharhinus obscurus (Lesueur, 1818) Range of dusky shark The dusky shark, Carcharhinus obscurus, is one of the larger species of shark, reaching 350 kg. ... Binomial name Carcharhinus leucas (Müller and Henle, 1839) Range of bull shark The bull shark, Carcharhinus leucas, also known as the bull whaler, Zambezi River shark or colloquially Zambi, is common worldwide in warm, shallow waters along coasts, and well-known for its unpredictable, often aggressive behavior. ... Binomial name Orcinus orca Linnaeus, 1758 Orca range (in blue) The Orca or Killer Whale (Orcinus orca) is the largest species of the oceanic dolphin family (Delphinidae). ...

Swimming in packs 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.^[19]

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. Less local climate change such as increasing water temperature may also play a role. o^[20] The Moray Firth is a roughly triangular area of the North Sea, north and east of Inverness. ... Motto (Latin) No one provokes me with impunity Wha daur meddle wi me?(Scots)1 Anthem (Multiple unofficial anthems) Scotlands location in Europe Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official languages English, Gaelic, Scots3 Government Constitutional monarchy  -  Queen Queen Elizabeth II  -  Prime Minister Tony Blair MP  -  First Minister Jack McConnell... Variations in CO2, temperature and dust from the Vostok ice core over the last 400,000 years For current global climate change, see Global warming. ...

In U.S. waters, hunting and harassing of marine mammals is forbidden in almost all circumstances. The international trade in dolphins is also tightly controlled. Motto: (Out Of Many, One) (traditional) In God We Trust (1956 to date) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington D.C. Largest city New York City None at federal level (English de facto) Government Federal constitutional republic  - President George Walker Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence from...

Bottlenose Dolphins and humans

K-Dog, trained by the US Navy to find mines and boobytraps underwater, leaping out of the water

Bottlenose Dolphins are still occasionally killed in dolphin drive hunts for their meat or because they compete for fish. 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. This has led to boycotts of tuna products and a "dolphin-safe" label for tuna caught with methods that don't endanger dolphins. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (665x800, 148 KB) Summary Bottlenose dolphin of the NMMP on mineclearance operations, with locator beacon. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (665x800, 148 KB) Summary Bottlenose dolphin of the NMMP on mineclearance operations, with locator beacon. ... The United States Navy (USN) is the branch of the United States armed forces responsible for naval operations. ... Dolphin drive hunting is a method of hunting dolphins used by fishermen in several towns in Japan and a few other places around the world. ... Genera See article below. ... A shoal of skipjack tuna Tuna are several species of ocean-dwelling fish in the family Scombridae, mostly in the genus Thunnus. ... Look up Boycott in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

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. This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

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. For other uses, see Aquarium (disambiguation). ... Lowest pressure 902 mbar (hPa; 26. ... Gulfport is the name of some places in the United States of America: Gulfport, Florida Gulfport, Mississippi This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... This article does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

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 USA's program is the U.S. Navy Marine Mammal Program, located in San Diego, California. The armed forces of the United States of America consist of the United States Army United States Navy United States Air Force United States Marine Corps United States Coast Guard Note: The United States Coast Guard has both military and law enforcement functions. ... A U.S. Navy Marine Mammal Program dolphin named K-Dog wearing a locating pinger, performed mine clearance work in the Persian Gulf during the Iraq War. ... The U.S. Navy Marine Mammal Program (NMMP) is a program administered by the U.S. Navy which studies the military use of marine mammals â€” principally Bottlenose Dolphins and California Sea Lions â€” and trains animals to perform tasks such as ship and harbour protection, mine detection and clearance, and equipment... Nickname: Americas Finest City Location of San Diego within San Diego County Coordinates: Country United States State California County San Diego Founded July 16, 1769 Incorporated March 27, 1850 Government  - Mayor Jerry Sanders  - City Attorney Michael Aguirre  - City Council Scott Peters Kevin Faulconer Toni Atkins Tony Young Brian Maienschein...

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. 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.^{[citation needed]} Laguna is a Brazilian city located in the southern state of Santa Catarina, located 120 kilometers south of the states capital, Florianópolis. ...

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.^{[citation needed]}

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. 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.^[21]

• Ensign Darwin was a Bottlenose Dolphin crew member of seaQuest on the television series seaQuest DSV. Thanks to an invention by Lucas Wolenczak (Jonathan Brandis), Darwin could communicate verbally with the crew. 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 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. 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. 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. The film stars Steve Guttenberg and Kathleen Quinlan.

• Xenogears, an Franz Hanz a Antromorphic Bottlenose Dolphin humanoid in Xenogear

• 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). Also, a Bottlenose Dolphin named Akeakamai is a central character in his book Startide Rising.

• 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). 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. Dolphins are also mentioned the books "Dragonsdawn" and "Chronicles of Pern: First Fall" in the same series.

• In one of the episodes of Treehouse of Horror 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. They later successfully drive the humans (the townsfolk of Springfield) into the sea while they took over dry land.

• In the computer game expansion packs Zoo Tycoon: Marine Mania and Zoo Tycoon 2: Marine Mania, bottlenose dolphins are the main animal on the box art.

• The song "The Future Soon" from Jonathan Coulton's album Where Tradition Meets Tomorrow includes a line about making dolphins learn to speak.

Factual descriptions of the Bottlenose Dolphin date back into antiquity - the writings of Aristotle, Oppian and Pliny the Elder all mention the species.^[22] Flipper was a television series that ran from 1964 till 1967 on NBC. A television adaptation or spin-off from the 1963 movie Flipper, the show focused on widowed, young Everglades National Park ranger Porter Ricks (Brian Kelly, 1932-2005, playing the role Chuck Connors played in the film), his... Ivan Tors (born Budapest, Hungary June 12, 1916 - June 4, 1983) was in his life an animal trainer, playwright, screenwriter, radio writer and film and television producer. ... Lassie was a American television series which originally aired from 1954 to 1974. ... Flipper is an American feature film (1963) written by Ricou Browning and Jack Cowden, and directed by James B. Clark. ... Flipper, the 1996 movie, is about Sandy, played by Elijah Wood, a boy who has to spend the summer with his uncle Porter (Paul Hogan), who lives in the Florida Keys. ... This page may meet Wikipedia’s criteria for speedy deletion. ... Paul Hogan starring as Crocodile Dundee. ... Jessica Marie Alba (born April 28, 1981) is an American actress. ... seaQuest DSV was an American science fiction television series created by Rockne S. OBannon. ... Jonathan Brandis as Lucas Wolenczak Lucas Wolenczak (later Ensign Lucas Wolenczak) was a character on the television series seaQuest DSV, played by the late Jonathan Brandis. ... Jonathan Gregory Brandis (April 13, 1976 – November 12, 2003) was an American film and television actor. ... Audio-Animatronics is the registered trademark for a form of robotics created by Walt Disney Imagineering for shows and attractions at Disney theme parks, and subsequently expanded on and used by other companies. ... The cover of the first novel in the Hitchhikers series, from a late 1990s printing. ... So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish (1984, ISBN 0-345-39183-7) is the fourth book of the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy series written by Douglas Adams. ... High wire act Acrobatics (from Greek Akros, high and bat, walking) is one of the performing arts, and is also practiced as a sport. ... Namcos Pac-Man was a hit, and became a cultural phenomenon. ... It has been suggested that this article be split into multiple articles. ... Sega Corporation ) is an international video game software and hardware developing company, and a former home computer and console manufacturer. ... Zeus and Roxanne was a 1997 film directed by George Miller. ... HBO (Home Box Office) is an American premium cable television network. ... Steve Guttenberg (born on August 24, 1958), sometimes credited as Steven Guttenberg and Steven Robert Guttenberg, is an American actor. ... Kathleen Denise Quinlan (born November 19, 1954) is an Oscar nominated American actress, mostly seen on television and in motion pictures. ... This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims. ... Glen David Brin, Ph. ... The Uplift Universe is a fictional universe created by science fiction writer David Brin. ... In science fiction, biological uplift is a common but by no means universal term for the act of an advanced civilization helping the development of another species by bringing a non-sapient one into sentience, or by giving a sapient one spacefaring capabilities. ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Type species Simia troglodytes Blumenbach, 1775 distribution of Species Pan troglodytes Pan paniscus Chimpanzee, often shortened to chimp, is the common name for the two extant species in the genus Pan. ... Startide Rising is a 1983 science fiction novel by David Brin and the second book of six set in his Uplift Universe (preceded by Sundiver and followed by The Uplift War). ... Anne Inez McCaffrey (born April 1, 1926) is an American science fiction author best known for her Dragonriders of Pern series. ... The Dolphins of Pern is a fantasy/science fiction novel by Anne McCaffrey that was first published in 1994. ... The Dragonriders of Pern is an extensive fantasy/science fiction series of novels and short stories primarily written by Anne McCaffrey. ... Pern is a fictional planet in the universe created by science fiction writer Anne McCaffrey for her Dragonriders of Pern series of novels. ... Jonathan Coulton is an esoteric folk rock singer. ... Aristotle (Greek: Aristotélēs) (384 BC – March 7, 322 BC) was a Greek philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. ... OPPIAN (Gr. ... Pliny the Elder: an imaginative 19c portrait. ...

See also

• Cetacean intelligence
• Dolphinarium
• Audiograms in mammals

Cetacean intelligence denotes the cognitive capabilities of the cetacean order of mammals and especially the various species of dolphin. ... Dolphinarium is a great aquarium for dolphins. ... // An audiogram is used to show the quietest sounds someone can hear at different frequencies Hz (pitches). ...

References

General references

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (also known as the IUCN Red List and Red Data List), created in 1963, is the worlds most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of plant and animal species and can be found here. ... The World Conservation Union or International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) is an international organization dedicated to natural resource conservation. ... The World Conservation Union or International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) is an international organization dedicated to natural resource conservation. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... November 3 is the 307th day of the year (308th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 58 days remaining. ... The National Geographic Society was founded in the USA on January 27, 1888, by 33 men interested in organizing a society for the increase and diffusion of geographical knowledge. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... November 3 is the 307th day of the year (308th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 58 days remaining. ... The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, usually referred to as PNAS, is the official journal of the United States National Academy of Sciences. ... The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) [1] is an online database of information about actors, movies, television shows, television stars and video games. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... November 3 is the 307th day of the year (308th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 58 days remaining. ...

External links

• MarineBio: Bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus
• Project Delphis (dolphin cognition research)
• Tursiops.org: Current Cetacean-related news
• The Dolphin Institute - Louis Herman's laboratory for research in dolphin cognition and sensory processes
• Blue World Institute of Marine Research and Conservation Veli Lošinj - Adriatic Dolphin Project
• The Nature Conservancy works to protect the habitat of the bottlenose dolphin
• Bottlenose Dolphin photos
• [1]News article
• Tursiops truncatus (Bottlenose dolphin) Photo Gallery
• WDCS

Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... Wikimedia Commons logo by Reid Beels The Wikimedia Commons (also called Commons or Wikicommons) is a repository of free content images, sound and other multimedia files. ... GFDL Wikispecies logo File links The following pages link to this file: Solanaceae Species Asterias Homo (genus) Human Wikipedia:Template messages/Links Wikipedia:Template messages/All Homo floresiensis User talk:Tuneguru Template:Wikispecies Categories: GFDL images ... Wikispecies is a sister project supported by the Wikimedia Foundation that anybody can edit with a great potential use to students and researchers. ... Louis Herman is a researcher in of dolphin sensory abilities, dolphin cognition, and humpback whales. ...