We explain everything about dolphins, where they live, what they eat and how they reproduce. Also, what types of dolphins exist.
The dolphin is one of the most intelligent animals on the planet.
Dolphins are cetacean mammals of aquatic life, inhabitants of seas and rivers depending on the species, which are among the most intelligent animal species on the planet.
In general, when we think of dolphins, we refer to the 37 species that make up the oceanic variant (of the family Delphinidae ), which inhabit the sea surface and maintain frequent and friendly relationships with humans, despite the fact that they are often accidental victims. of their commercial and fishing activities.
Dolphins are, from a zoological point of view, little more than toothed whales, that is, marine mammals that returned from the mainland to marine life, sometime in the Miocene, 23 million years ago, when they presented the necessary adaptations evolutionary for it. It is thought that the common ancestor between dolphins and land animals was a species of artiodactyls, that is, prehistoric hippopotamuses.
In most cultures, dolphins are considered friendly and intelligent. In fact, they are sociable animals, perfectly trainable, which today are a regular part of shows and water parks.
Their presence in ancient mythological stories is common in maritime cultures, such as the Greeks, in which they were said to have been pirates, transformed into fish by the god Dionysus after they tried to sell him as a slave. In his representations of Poseidon, god of the seas, he is often surrounded by seahorses and dolphins.
Dolphins can form groups of up to 1,000 individuals.
Broadly speaking, dolphins are characterized by the following:
Dolphins prefer the warm waters of the tropics.
Dolphins commonly inhabit the surface regions of seas, rivers, and lakes, depending on the family and the species. They make their entire life in the water, without the need to enter the mainland, and always prefer the warm waters of the tropics and surrounding regions.
Dolphins are intelligent hunters who isolate their prey from the school.
Dolphins are carnivorous, their diet consisting of small fish and squid. They are intelligent hunters, who have very varied strategies to isolate their prey from the school or to set up ambushes.
As with mammals in general, dolphins reproduce sexually and viviparously, with internal fertilization of the female by the male.
Coitus occurs from the front, lasts a short time, and is repeated several times, after a courtship in which the male reproduces striking sounds for the female, swimming around her. The gestation of dolphins lasts about a year, although in some species it can last a year and a half, and in the end, there is only one offspring per delivery.
The life expectancy of dolphins can be around 20 to 30 years and can be extended longer in ideal captive conditions. In the wild, this species does not have large predators or threats.
However, they are threatened by humans, due to environmental contamination by pesticides, heavy metals, and plastics, or accidental fishing in the midst of schools of commercial fish (such as tuna). There are also some countries where the dolphin is part of traditional cuisine, such as Japan and the Faroe Islands.
Oceanic dolphins interact with humans.
There are two "types" of dolphins, with different habitats and different characteristics, since they are two different superfamilies, each one encompassing a different set of species: