By Sonakshi Kandhari
23rd February, 2023
Did a dolphin greet you with a smile? It’s not your imagination. The curved shape of their mouths gives them an incessant smile. These aquatic mammals are friendly, playful, intuitive, and kind. Knowing of their lesser-known unique traits is going to make you adore dolphins even more.
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Dolphin calves need milk and feel defenceless in the absence of their mother. Hence they love to stick around their mothers until they turn 5.
Image source: Pexels
Dolphins like cows, have two stomachs rather than one. They use one stomach to digest and the other to store food. This supports them in their diet, which is approximately 33 pounds of fish per day.
Dolphins are called the ‘brainiacs of the sea. One sign of a dolphin's intelligence and self-awareness is the ability to recognise themselves when they pass by a mirror.
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Dolphin is a voluntary breather that has to alert itself to breathe.Since they cannot breathe underwater, they often have to swim to the water surface or the shore to breathe.Thus, even at night, they keep half their brain awake to keep control of their breathing.
It is a part of their hunting activity because it helps ward their prey to the surface. Dolphins blow bubbles when they are extremely excited and even while mating, the male dolphin produces a stream of bubbles while pausing to gather his breath.
Dolphins travel together in groups called ‘pods’. These pods can include a group of 2–30 dolphins. They are quick to make friends with human beings. Dolphins demonstrate compassion by looking after young dolphins or those that are sick or injured.
Dolphins are known to make the rarest sounds in the aquatic world. Their common forms of expression include whistling, clicking, moaning, yelping, squawking, squeaking and groaning. A dolphin's sequential jumps are an expression of joy.
Dolphins skin is soft and smooth, and it feels like a slippery river rock. The skin's softness is due to its quick regeneration, which happens as quickly as two hours. Due to the intense activity of their skin, they are highly sensitive and reactive to chemical compounds and other pollutants.
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Dolphins possess an ability called ‘echolocation' which is also called sonar. This enables a dolphin to perceive the underwater world using sound waves that bounce off nearby objects. It almost works like a sixth sense, helping them in locating food and becoming alert in the face of danger.
They are termed ‘flippers’ for a reason. Normally they can typically swim at 7-8 miles per hour, and at 25 miles per hour in an emergency.
Image source: Pexels