The Garden of Eaden: WHAT DO DOLPHINS DO?

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Dolphins are arguably the best known and loved of all the marine mammals. However, many aspects of the dolphins way of life still remain a mystery. Be that as it may, dolphins have been the subject of scientific research for decades and so at least there are some areas of dolphin behaviour that we do know of.

So, just what do dolphins do?

Dolphins are very sociable animals and live in groups comprised of a single sex, or a mixed group of males, females and their young calves. They also help each other when hunting, giving birth or when sick, so their friendly and co-operative behaviour is actually a vital part of social bonding and species survival. They also spend a large part of the day in play including the adult males!

Dolphins use whistles and clicks to communicate with each other. It is not yet known how complicated this language is, but they undoubtedly recognise and respond to one another.

Breeding

Dolphins usually mate in the spring and the summer, and the females give birth underwater to a single calf 10 to 12 months later.

Two, and sometimes even more, dolphin 'midwives' surround the mother to help with the delivery and also to protect her and the new born calf from attack by sharks attracted to blood shed during the birthing process. Sometimes, the midwives will gently tug at the baby's tail as it emerges while whistling encouragement to both mother and youngster. Then, as a group, they move together in order to help guide the new born to the surface so that it can take its first, vital breath of air. However, female dolphins are still quite capable of giving birth without the assistance of others.

Once the calf is born, it will suckle 3.4 liters of milk every day for 9 months or less. Baby dolphins do not have lips and since they are unable to suckle the nipple, they hit it with their rostrum (beak) until the milk is ejected. The dolphin mother will nurse her calf for at least 16 months, so she generally comes into breeding condition once every two to three years. Each time she does breed it is likely to be with a different male.

This kind of social help also extends to injured dolphins too. An injured dolphins cries of distress will summon instant aid from other dolphins in the vacinity. They will then try and carry or support the injured dolphin in the water so that it is able to reach the surface and breathe.

What do dolphins eat?

The worlds dolphin populations are made up from almost forty species varying in size from 1.2 m and 40 for the Maui's dolphin, and up to 9.5 m and 10 tonnes for the killer whale. They are found worldwide, mostly in the shallower seas of the continental shelf. So clearly, with this much variation within the dolphin family, you can expect the same variation in each species diet.

So, while some dolphins eat fishes like herring, cod or mackerel, others species will prefer to eat squids.

Of course, the largest of all the dolphin species - the killer whales - will also eat marine mammals like seals or sea lions and sometime even turtles.

Usually, the amount of fish that they eat depends on the kind of fish that they hunt. While mackerel or herring will contain a lot of fatty oils in their bodies, squid will not have so much, therefore, to get enough energy required for their activities, dolphins will have to eat a lot more squid than mackerel.

On average, a dolphin with a weigh of 200 to 250 Kg will eat between 10 and 25 Kg of fish every day.

How do dolphins catch their food

As you can expect, various methods of feeding exist among and within species, some apparently exclusive to a single population. Fish and squid are the main food, but the false killer whale and the orca (the true killer whale) also feed on other marine mammals like seals. They have been known to eat penguins and even sea turtles!

The Garden of Eaden

WHAT DO DOLPHINS DO?

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