Featured Image Credit: Unsplash
The month of March is when we celebrate and raise awareness of dolphins, extremely intelligent creatures with bubbly personalities.
They are mammals, and are closely related to, but are not themselves, whales or porpoises.
Here’s an interesting fact: The name dolphin originates from the Greek word δελφίς (delphís), which is interpreted to mean “a ‘fish’ with a womb.”
Most dolphins have great eyesight and can hear frequencies ten times or more above the upper limit of adult human hearing.
Ever wondered my dolphins are often seen leaping out of the water? Some scientists believe that when traveling, the leaping is a way to save energy because the air has less friction than the water.
Other scientists believe the leaping is a social behavior, non-verbal communication, entertainment, or a way to dislodge parasites.
Here are a few more fast facts about our dolphin friends:
- Bottlenose dolphins have 72-104 teeth
- A dolphin may be able to dive up to 1,000 feet.
- Dolphins can swim at a speed of up to 25 miles per hour.
- Dolphins are highly social animals, often living in pods of up to a dozen individuals.
In addition to sharing these fun facts, during the month of March we’ll take a look at the 40 (yea, 40!) different dolphin species, the plight of dolphins in Taiji hunts, the threat of morbillivirus, and current efforts to study and protect this beautiful creature.
Stay tuned for a whole month of dolphin love from Awesome Ocean by liking our Facebook page, following us on Twitter and subscribing to our bi-weekly newsletter.