Dolphin Behavior

With many dolphin collectible gifts in our store you will find the perfect gift. Dolphins are widely believed to be amongst the most intelligent of all animals. A typical statement would be that are roughly as intelligent as a two year old human. However, experts in comparative psychology or animal cognition would be reluctant to make any such estimate, as quantitative comparisons of intelligence between species are notoriously difficult to make in principle. Straight forward comparisons of species' relative intelligence are complicated by differences in sensory apparatus, response modes, and nature of cognition; furthermore, the difficulty and expense of doing experimental work with a large marine animal mean that even such tests as can meaningfully be done have still not been done, or have been carried out with inadequate sample size and methodology.

Dolphins often leap above the water surface, sometimes performing acrobatic figures (e.g. the spinner dolphin). This and other behavior is interpreted as playing. They are capable of diving up to 260 m deep and 15 min long, but rarely stay underwater longer than few minutes. Frequently dolphins will accompany boats, riding the bow waves. They are also famous for their willingness to occasionally approach humans and playfully interact with them in the water. In return, in some cultures like in Ancient Greece they were treated with welcome; a ship spotting dolphins riding in their wake was considered a good omen for a smooth voyage.

There have been reports of dolphins protecting swimmers against sharks by swimming circles around the swimmers. Dolphins are social animals, living in pods (also called "schools") of up to a dozen animals. In places with high abundance of food, schools can join temporarily forming aggregations of over 1000 dolphins called a superpod. The individuals communicate using a variety of clicks, whistles and other vocalizations. They also use ultrasonic sounds for echo location. Dolphin leaping in the air. Membership in schools is not rigid; interchange is common. However, the animals can establish strong bonds between each other. This leads to them staying with injured or ill fellows for support.

Because of their high capacity for learning, humans have employed dolphins for any number of purposes. Dolphins trained to perform in front of an audience have become a favorite attraction in dolphinaria, for example Sea World. Dolphin/Human interaction is also employed in a curative sense at places where dolphins work with autistic or otherwise disabled children. The military too has employed dolphins for various purposes from finding mines to rescuing lost or trapped persons. Such military dolphins, however drew scrutiny during the Vietnam War when rumors circulated that dolphins were being trained to kill Vietnamese Skin Divers.

In May 2005, researchers in Australia discovered a cultural aspect of dolphin behaviour. Some dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) teach their offspring to use a tool. The animals break off sponges and put them onto their mouths thus protecting the delicate body part during their hunt for fish on the seabed. Other than with primate simians, the knowledge to use a tool is mostly handed over only from mothers to daughters. The technology to use sponges as mouth protection is not genetically inherited but a taught cultural behaviour. Dolphins do not have acute eyesight nor do they appear to have a good sense of smell, although their sense of hearing is far above our own.