bottlenose dolphin habitat
Bottlenose Dolphin Habitat
Apart from getting some useful facts on the bottlenose dolphin habitat, you will also come to know about some interesting features of this gentle creature of the sea from this article.
- These dolphins make the use of echolocation (method to determine how far an object is by measuring the time of an echo to return after hitting it). With its help, they can detect the location, size and shape of their preys to which they hit their sound signals with. And how do they do that? They produce about 1,000 clicking noises per second. Some kind of fast clicking it is!
- Another mode of communication for these mammals is leaping as high as 20 feet in the air.
- They also pass on messages by jaw snapping, or slapping the water surface with their tails.
- Males tend to be larger in size than females.
- Being mammals like us, these dolphins cannot breathe under water thus, they must swim to the surface. Blowholes in their heads help them breathe.
- When left free in the wild waters, these swimmers can travel as fast as 30 km/hr.
- Bottlenose are also popular due to their social nature to travel, and forage in groups. They have a complex system of communication which comprises squeaks and whistles. This communication system enables them to come to the aid of an injured dolphin, even if it takes them to swim up to the surface of the water.
- One incident that took place on March 10, 2008, can vouch for the amazing intelligence and helpful nature of these creatures. Two pygmy sperm whales got trapped between a sand bar and Mahia beach, New Zealand. In spite of all the efforts taken by the rescuers, the whales remained trapped. Moko, a male bottlenose dolphin came to the rescue by leading the whales through a narrow channel to the safety of the sea. This incident earned Moko, worldwide fame and popularity.
- When a baby bottlenose dolphin is born, it comes out tail first. This is to keep it from drowning.
- The reproduction rate of these creatures is as low as one calf every two to three years.
- One incident was reported wherein, an Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin was found teaching its young how to use tools. In order to protect the babies while foraging, the adult dolphin covered their mouths with sponges. This is a behavior which is typical of humans and other primates.
- These mammals are poor on smelling but they score significantly well on their hearing capabilities.