A Dolphins Daycare
Dolphins, we all know how intelligent they are, don't we? Well, us humans are always learning, changing, exploring and forever diving deeper into the abyssal planes of knowledge. How do we do this?... I have no idea but I'm sure watching, observing, learning and teaching all play their part in developing our knowledge base. What if I told you that this is exactly what dolphins do? Delve into the deep and explore the mysterious world, known to us as the ocean and learn more about the famously loverble dolphin.
Dolphins have evolved features which best help them survive in the harsh ocean environment. For example, they don'y lay eggs.... no that would be weird but why not? have you ever thought about why some animals give birth to live young and others lay eggs? When you start thinking about it, it may begin to make more sense. Female dolphins, like us, grow and provide for their young internally because they exploit a large, harsh environment and need to travel large distances on a daily bases. This however does come with its drawbacks as internal gestation changes the morphological state of that individual. This makes even the most basic tasks, such as swimming a challenge.
Parental investment... Ok, lets take a few steps back. Everything I have talked about so far has been pretty rushed but that's because there is soooo much to talk about. For the purpose of this blog lets keep in narrow and focus solely on parental investment.
Calves grow in their mothers womb until they are able to move and swim by themselves, once they are fully formed they will emerge into the ocean and will instinctively know how to swim and that they should stay close to its mothers head. This is known as echelon swimming and lasts about a week until the calve moves down nearer the mothers dorsal fin. This behaviour provides protection for the young but comes at a cost to the mother because it makes swimming more energetically expensive.
Once the young dolphins begin to mature they must learn how to hunt and provide food for themselves. Mothers will teach their young how to hunt through exaggerating their body movements towards prey while the calves observe and learn. The ability to learn through observation is one of the reasons why these animals are so cognitively advanced and goes on to explain why and how cultural difference can arise in different groups of dolphins... this could be another blog.
Science is continually finding more evidence that shocks us about the intelligence and capabilities of these amazing animals. Who knows what they will find out next? The most recent thing I remember reading is that killer whales are being taught how to speak in English.
Don't forget to check out my other blog on 'The Quest for a Kingfisher' where I tell you all about how I found a wild kingfisher. https://wildlifeopblog.wixsite.com/opblog/single-post/2018/01/16/The-Quest-for-the-Kingfisher
Bender, C. E., Herzing, D. L., & Bjorklund, D. F. (2009). Evidence of teaching in atlantic spotted dolphins (stenella frontalis) by mother dolphins foraging in the presence of their calves. Animal Cognition, 12(1), 43-53.
Noren, S. R., Redfern, J. V., & Edwards, E. F. (2011). Pregnancy is a drag: hydrodynamics, kinematics and performance in pre- and post-parturition bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). Journal of Experimental Biology, 214(24), 4151-4159.