Description of a dolphin for children. Dolphins - interesting facts for children and adults Interesting facts about dolphins on the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus

Many of us have been to dolphin shows. Funny and always smiling animals, they swim to music, catch rings, jump over obstacles and even draw. In this article you will learn even more little-known information. We offer you the most interesting facts about dolphins.

1. Dolphins belong to the family of the suborder of toothed whales of the cetacean order.
2. Under the name “dolphin”, scientists identify about 70 species of living creatures that inhabit bodies of water (seas, oceans, bays and rivers around the world).

3. Dolphins have a very interesting swimming style. Describing circles first in one direction, they observe those around them with one eye, and in the other direction with the other eye. Thus, dolphins make sure that predators do not get close.
4. The fastest species of dolphins swim at speeds of more than 30 kilometers per hour. The average speed of most individuals is from 5 to 12 kilometers per hour.

5. Dolphins live in schools, and all its members are relatives. They help each other when necessary, support the babies above the water so that they do not choke. There are numerous reports of dolphins rescuing drowning people.

6. At birth, each dolphin is given its own name by the pod. The difference in the sound of whistles between individuals has been scientifically recorded.
7. Structure internal organs Dolphins are in many ways similar to humans. These mammals also breathe with lungs and have a four-chambered heart. In addition, the ratio of brain mass to total mass body and even its dimensions (1.5-2 meters) are also approximately the same as in humans.
8. To see an object up close, dolphins, like killer whales, lie on their sides.
9. The blowhole on the upper body of dolphins is responsible for the sounds they make.

10. To find food, dolphins use their natural ability of echolocation.
11. Dolphins can recognize themselves in the reflection of a mirror.
12. According to scientists, dolphins descended from land animals similar to wolves. In the process of evolution, they adapted to life in water.
13. The head of the dolphin family is a female.

14. Nature made sure that the newly born dolphin does not swallow sea water. The calf is born with its flippers forward. When the head is born, the mother, together with other relatives, pushes it to the surface of the water.
15. Dolphins differ from fish in the way they swim. If fish underwater wave their tail from side to side, then these animals move it up and down.
16. An adult dolphin has 210 teeth. They are used to capture and hold food. But dolphins cannot chew; they do not have chewing muscles.

17. Everyone is interested in how dolphins sleep. After all, they, like people, need air. The brain of dolphins is structured in such a way that while one half of it is asleep, the other is awake, and accordingly is responsible for breathing. So dolphins sleep about 8 hours a day, swimming near the surface of the water or in shallow water.
18. A little dolphin stays near its mother for about 2-3 years.
19. Whales and sea cows- the closest relatives of dolphins.
20. Adult river dolphin weighs about 40 kilograms, and the killer whale (also a genus of dolphins) can reach 10 tons.

21. There are more than 180 different sounds in the speech of dolphins.
22. Dolphins have, in truth, unique ability Ultrasound examination of living beings. It is thanks to this that mammals accurately determine the pregnancy of women in the water with them. Having learned about this, dolphins display a very active, joyful, violent emotional attack.
23. Male dolphins give gifts to their potential mates during the courtship period. It could be a luxurious bouquet... of algae!

Interesting video about dolphins. The guy was just filming a video and didn’t know that he would film something like this... Watch:

Each dolphin in the ocean has its own name, which it responds to when its relatives call it. He receives it immediately as soon as he is born, and it is a characteristic whistle lasting 0.9 seconds. Dolphins not only call each other by name, but also introduce themselves when meeting strangers. And identifying a relative by voice without seeing him is a piece of cake for them.

Dolphins are mammals from the family of toothed whales of the cetacean order. There are about forty species of these animals on the planet, and they can be seen anywhere in the World Ocean. Most dolphins prefer to live in tropical and subtropical latitudes, but there are some that like colder waters, so you can see them near the Arctic, and some species are found both there. For example, although the white-beaked dolphin lives mainly in the North Atlantic, it can often be seen off the coast of Turkey.

Most members of the family (for example, bottlenose dolphins, white-beaked dolphins) are marine inhabitants, but there are four species that prefer to live in fresh river or lake water. The river dolphin lives in Asia, as well as in the waters of the South American Amazon and Orinoco rivers.

Unfortunately, if previously representatives of this family were often encountered, now the river dolphin, due to loss of habitats and pollution, environment, a decrease in the amount of food and small populations has practically disappeared and is listed in the Red Book.

Description

The length of dolphins ranges from one and a half to ten meters. The smallest dolphin in the world is Maui, which lives near New Zealand: the length of the female does not exceed 1.7 meters. Large inhabitant depths of the sea The white-faced dolphin is considered to be about three meters long. The largest representative is the killer whale: males reach ten meters in length.

It is worth noting that males are usually ten to twenty centimeters longer than females (the exception is killer whale dolphins - here the difference is about two meters). They weigh on average from one hundred fifty to three hundred kilograms, the killer whale weighs about a ton.

The backs of sea dolphins can be gray, blue, dark brown, black and even pink (albinos). The front part of the head can be either plain or white (for example, the white-faced dolphin has a white beak and the front part of its forehead).

In some species, the front mouth is rounded and there is no beak-shaped mouth. In others, small ones, the head ends in an elongated mouth in the shape of a flattened “beak”, and the mouth is shaped in such a way that it seems to people watching them that they are always smiling, and therefore they often have an irresistible desire to swim with dolphins. At the same time, the impression is not spoiled even by the huge number of teeth of the same cone shape - dolphins have about two hundred of them.

Thanks to their elongated body and smooth, elastic skin, these animals hardly feel the resistance of the water while moving. Thanks to this, they are able to move very quickly ( average speed a dolphin's speed is 40 km/h), dive to a depth of about one hundred meters, jump out of the water nine meters high and five meters long.

Another unique feature of these marine mammals is that almost all types of dolphins (with the exception of the Amazon river dolphin and several other species) see well both underwater and above the surface. They have this ability due to the structure of the retina, one part of which is responsible for the image in the water, the other - above its surface.

Since whales and dolphins are relatives, like all representatives of cetaceans, they are quite capable of staying under water for a long period. But they still need oxygen, so they constantly float to the surface, showing their blue muzzle and replenishing air reserves through the blowhole, which closes under water. Even during sleep, the animal is fifty centimeters from the surface and, without waking up, swims out every half a minute.

way of life

Dolphins live in schools and do not tolerate loneliness very well. Although they do not have a leader, they carry out all actions in coordination: they hunt together, raise children, have fun, performing amazingly beautiful jumps one after another.

The dolphin is considered one of the most intelligent mammals on our planet: the weight of its brain is 1700 grams, which is three hundred grams more than a human, and the convolutions in the cerebral cortex are also twice as large. This explains their highly developed social consciousness, ability to sympathize, readiness to help sick and wounded relatives, as well as drowning people.

Dolphins help quite actively: if one of the members of the pod is injured or barely stays afloat, they support him near the surface so that he cannot drown and choke. They do the same in relation to a person, also helping to get to the shore. Some scientists explain why dolphins do this by caring for the population: each individual in the pod is valuable - and everything must be done to save its life.

Language

Animals use gestures to communicate (turns, jumps, various styles swimming, head, fins, tail), as well as voice: the sounds of dolphins are about 14 thousand signals, and everyone has heard about the songs of dolphins. These unique animals are capable of perceiving vibration frequencies of up to 200 thousand per second, while the human ear is up to 20 thousand.

They are also four times more capable of analyzing dolphin sounds by separating frequencies from each other (to find out why dolphins have these abilities, see lately a lot of research is being done). Communication occurs mainly using ultrasound (it is especially convenient for them to use it to transmit sound over vast distances).

Dolphin songs are not only ultrasound: the sounds of dolphins often sound at a medium frequency and are expressed by clicks, creaks, and whistles (studies have shown that they perceive their speech as hieroglyphic pictures).

There are two types of dolphin sounds:

Sonar or echolocation - animals hear the echo of a beating sound and identify it;
Whistling or chirping - these sounds of dolphins are used for close communication with their relatives and the animals express their emotions with them. Scientists counted about 186 different types“whistles”, which, like human speech, contain sounds, syllables, words, phrases, paragraphs, context and dialect.

Nutrition

Dolphins' diet is based on fish, squid, and shrimp (some dolphins in the ocean are quite capable of diving to a depth of 260 kilometers to catch their favorite prey); killer whales eat marine mammals and birds.

They catch fish in different ways. Sometimes the whole school of dolphins is looking for her, sometimes - separate group or they send a scout to look for him.

If the hunt takes place in the open sea, dolphins surround a large school of fish, crowding them into a heap, after which they take turns diving there and feeding. If they are fishing near the shore, the strategy is somewhat different: a school of dolphins drives the schools towards land, after which the fish are easily caught in shallow water.

Reproduction

The ability to reproduce in females appears between the fifth and twelfth years of life, in males - between the ninth and thirteenth. Their pairs are unstable and the animals change partners every time.

Exactly how long pregnancy lasts has not been established; it is estimated that this period ranges from ten to eighteen months. When giving birth, the female is very close to the surface so that, as soon as the baby is born, she raises her tail high, giving him the opportunity to take a breath of air before falling into the water.

Usually one baby is born, about half a meter long, and until six months the mother feeds it with milk and protects it. Newborn babies usually do not fall asleep during the first month of their life and do not allow their mothers to sleep, swimming around them and surfacing every thirty seconds, forcing them to be constantly on alert.

Relationships with people

People and dolphins have a long and complex history: until recently, animals were actively hunted, which led to the complete and partial extinction of some species. After fishing was banned, the situation became better, but new trend: catching these animals for show (especially since they are very smart and catch everything on the fly) and giving people far from the sea the opportunity to swim with dolphins. It should be noted that the idea is not the best, because if in natural conditions the inhabitants of the sea live from thirty to fifty years, in captivity - only seven.

Their rapid death is primarily influenced by an overly passive lifestyle, even despite constant training to participate in the show, extremely limited space and water quality: the lack of a full range of nutrients and minerals they need.

Recently, people and dolphins have learned to interact better (primarily this concerns humans, since these animals are sociable, friendly and peaceful). Moreover, communication with these mammals benefits almost everyone: by giving the opportunity to listen to the songs of dolphins, communicate, stroke the blue back, feed fish, swim with dolphins, psychotherapists and doctors effectively use them to treat diseases in children such as cerebral palsy, early childhood autism, etc.

Dolphins have long been one of the most beloved ocean animals by humans. They have high intelligence and a cheerful, friendly disposition. Most of us associate dolphins with funny acrobatic performances at the dolphinarium. However, some countries are seriously concerned about keeping dolphins in captivity and are even passing laws to protect them.

Why have dolphins earned such respect among many peoples and become an integral part of human culture? Let's try to figure it out by studying interesting facts about these wonderful animals.

Dolphin in an enclosure.

India has become the fourth country to ban the keeping of dolphins in captivity. Previously, similar measures were taken by Costa Rica, Hungary and Chile. Indians call dolphins “a person or person of other origin than homo sapiens.” Accordingly, the “person” must have its own rights, and its exploitation for commercial purposes is legally unacceptable. Scientists who analyze animal behavior (ethologists) say that it is very difficult to determine the line separating human intelligence and emotions from the nature of dolphins.

The dolphin is the only mammal whose birth literally begins with the tail, and not with the head! Young dolphins stay with their mother for two or three years.

In nature, there are almost forty species of dolphins, their closest relatives are whales and sea cows. Dolphins evolved relatively recently - about ten million years ago, during the Miocene. Most species of dolphins live in salt water, but there are also freshwater animals.

Adult dolphins range in size from 1.2 m in length and weight from 40 kg (river dolphin) to 9.5 m and 10 tons (killer whale). The brain is the largest organ in a dolphin's body. During sleep, part of the brain is awake, allowing the dolphin to breathe in its sleep to avoid drowning. The life of a dolphin directly depends on access to oxygen.

Dolphins have a weak sense of smell, but excellent vision and absolutely unique hearing. Producing powerful sound pulses, they are capable of echolocation, which allows them to perfectly navigate in the water, find each other and get food.

Dolphins can swim at speeds of up to 25 miles per hour for long periods of time. That's about three times faster than the world's fastest swimmers.

They also love to do... surfing! For example, off the coast Hawaiian Islands You can often see surfing dolphins.

The history of interaction between man and dolphin begins with the first mention of these animals. It was recently discovered that dolphins' body language closely follows the rules of human verbal communication. Communication with dolphins has a positive effect on the human body, especially on the child’s psyche. British experts came to this conclusion back in 1978. Since that time, the development of “dolphin therapy” began. It is now used to treat many physical and mental illness, including autism. Swimming with dolphins relieves chronic pain, improves immunity and even helps children develop speech.

A dolphin and a pregnant woman off the coast of Ixtapa, Mexico. Ixtapa, MexicoPicture: CATERS

Absolutely unique feature dolphins - they can “look inside” a person, like an ultrasound device: for example, they quickly determine a woman’s pregnancy. The feeling of “new life” often excites dolphins very emotionally; they react violently and joyfully to pregnant women. As a rule, pregnant women are not allowed to swim in enclosures (although this may be best time for communication) so as not to take away the attention of animals from other visitors and to avoid an involuntary “emotional attack” on the unborn baby.

A touching example of human care for animals: a 10-day-old dolphin who lost its mother is being fed at the shelter.

He already has best friend- little penguin.

Dolphins easily and friendly communicate with other animals, and they reciprocate.

Dolphins study a tiger cub at a safari park in Ginseng, China.

An incredibly romantic fact from the “personal” life of dolphins - ethologists studying Amazon dolphins have discovered that males give gifts to potential partners. So, what gift is waiting for a female dolphin to consider a male as a candidate for procreation? Of course, a bouquet of river algae!

Due to their graceful beauty, dolphins have become popular models for photographers from all over the world. Let's see if looking at stunning photographs of these animals also has an effect similar to “dolphin therapy”?

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Beautiful bottlenose dolphins are the most common type of this mammal. They belong to cetaceans, and therefore dolphins can be safely called small whales or large bottlenose dolphins. Within the species, they are also divided into subspecies: in addition to the large one, there is the Australian and Indian bottlenose dolphin.

Description of appearance and features

The bottlenose dolphin is a toothed whale, and this is due to the presence of 100-200 small teeth in its mouth. Dolphins use them to capture mollusks, small fish and crustaceans. The shape of all teeth is identical - they are conical. The specific appearance of the muzzle and skull became business card bottlenose dolphin:

the head is small, but the skull contains a brain weighing up to 1.7 kg, which is 300 g more than that of a person;
It is noteworthy that the convolutions in the dolphin’s head are located 2 times denser;
the muzzle of mammals is elongated, with a rounded nose, the forehead hangs over the muzzle;
There are slits for breathing at the top of the head.

Swimming school of bottlenose dolphins

The body of a dolphin reaches 3.5 m in length, the smallest adult representatives of bottlenose dolphins have a length of 2 m. Females are usually 15-20 cm shorter. An adult bottlenose dolphin weighs 300 kg.

The dolphin is a flexible and mobile animal due to the presence of 7 cervical vertebrae, 5 of which are fused. The bottlenose dolphin does not have intricate skin tones. Usually the belly of carcasses is white or beige, and upper part– dark gray or brown.

The fins of the bottlenose dolphin are located on the back, tail and chest. In aquatic mammals, they are responsible for protection against overheating and extreme cooling. If the integrity of several fins is damaged, the dolphin may die. Fins are also used for defense and attack.

One of the most fascinating things about bottlenose dolphins is the sounds they make when communicating. The signals are remotely comparable to human speech. Scientists who study the language of dolphins highlight the features of speech: there are syllables and phrases, paragraphs, context, and dialects.

Bottlenose Dolphin Lifestyle

Bottlenose dolphins live in many parts of the planet and prefer warm waters, but are found in the Norwegian, Red Sea, near Greenland, as well as in the Mediterranean Sea, near Japan, New Zealand and Argentina.

Dolphins have a sedentary lifestyle, but can wander in search of food. Schools of dolphins are divided into small groups according to age. Each group has functions. However, mammals tend to be solitary for unknown reasons. Sometimes individuals leave the flock for a while and then return. In captivity, the dolphin hierarchy becomes stricter. The leaders are the older males of large size.

There are 7,000 individuals of the Black Sea mammal living in the Black Sea. However, their numbers are constantly decreasing due to gas and oil production, shipping, and poachers.

Lifespan and reproduction

Bottlenose dolphins begin to breed in spring and summer. Females reach the age of 5 years, and males - 8. Dolphins are polygamous animals; they can interbreed with other species of cetaceans. IN mating season, which lasts from 3 days to 3-4 weeks, dolphins swim in a special position, often rub their heads against each other and make mating sounds. Pregnancy lasts 11-12 months, and when the baby appears, the flock rejoices and welcomes it. The newborn and its mother are accompanied by other females to their first breath on the surface.

For 18 months, a young bottlenose dolphin feeds on its mother's milk. By the way, the product’s fat content is noticeably higher than cow’s. 4 months after birth, the baby tries another food for the first time. Dolphins live on average up to 40 years, and also suffer from some human diseases (strokes, heart attacks).

Character of bottlenose dolphins

Bottlenose dolphins are as trainable as dogs, demonstrate incredible tricks and are friendly to humans in captivity. Even in natural environment they show interest in people and often make contact. Bottlenose dolphins are characterized by a strong attachment to humans. If you release a dolphin that has lived in a dolphinarium for a long time into the wild, it will not swim far from this place. The trainability of bottlenose dolphins has made them in demand in naval forces. The military uses them as aquatic “dogs”: video surveillance and photography, delivery of explosives.

Bottlenose dolphins are easy to train

Since 1966, the catch of bottlenose dolphins in Black Sea prohibited on Russian territory. The Black Sea bottlenose dolphin is in the International Red Book. But every year, dozens of dolphins are killed in poachers' nets, while others die from being close to tankers and other industrial ships.

Truly, dolphins are considered man's best sea friends. They are friendly, happy and social animals and have been praised for their playful nature as well as high intelligence. There are many known cases where dolphins helped rescue services to save people. Here are 15 interesting facts about dolphins that you may not know.

The most interesting facts about dolphins

1. On at the moment There are currently 43 known species of dolphins. 38 of them are inhabitants of the seas and oceans, and the remaining 5 are riverine.

2. Research by scientists has proven that dolphins lived on land before adapting to water. When studying their fins, scientists discovered that they were actually formed and previously looked like paws and fingers. So perhaps our closest relatives are marine life.

3. Images of dolphins were found in the city of Petra, Jordan. This city was founded back in 312 BC. This means that the dolphins are already quite long time“cooperate” with a person.

4. Dolphins are the only animals that give birth to their young with their tail first. Otherwise, the kids would drown.

5. A tablespoon of water entering a dolphin's lungs can cause the animal to drown. At the same time, to drown a person needs two tablespoons of water to get into his lungs.

6. Dolphins can make sounds, which they use when communicating over long distances. These sounds also allow them to determine what objects are in front of them, which helps in calculating potential danger.

7. Dolphin sonars are the best in nature, several times superior bats and similar devices created by people.

8. While sleeping, the dolphin must remain on the surface of the water. Only one part of their brain is switched off, while the other remains “on alert.” It supports breathing and also allows you to monitor possible danger.

9. “The Cove” is the only film about dolphins to win an Oscar. In it, viewers can see how people heal these animals. The main theme of the film is the problem of cruelty towards dolphins.

10. Scientists believe that several hundred years ago dolphins were much smaller in size than they are now. They also suggest that echolocation is evolutionary process, which the animals acquired relatively recently.

11. Dolphins do not use their teeth when eating. They are designed exclusively for catching prey, which they subsequently simply swallow whole.

12. Another interesting fact about dolphins is that during times Ancient Greece killing a dolphin was considered sacrilege and punishable by death. The Greeks considered them "hieros ichthys", which translated means "sacred fish".

13. Scientists have found that dolphins give themselves names. They develop their own individual whistles and even when the tone of the whistle changes, dolphins are able to identify them.

14. Dolphins must force themselves to breathe. For them, this process is not brought to automaticity, compared to people.

15. Dolphins have two stomachs: one is for storing food, and the other is used for digestion.

16. Even though average duration Dolphins are only 17 years old, some centenarians can live up to 50 years.

17. Most great view Killer whales are considered dolphins. Their body length can reach 30 feet. In addition, killer whales are considered one of the most ferocious killers in the world.

18. If there is not enough food in their area of residence, dolphins can migrate to other places. New habitats depend not only on the availability of food, but also on the temperature of the water, which should not be lower than their body temperature.

19. Dolphins have very sensitive skin and can get injured at the slightest touch of a hard surface. However, even the most deep wounds are cured within a short time.

20. Dolphins can swim at speeds of 3 to 7 miles per hour. But scientists were able to record several cases where some individuals of these animals swam at a speed of about 20 miles per hour.

21. Sometimes dolphins die as soon as they get caught in fishing nets.

22.V Ancient Rome It was believed that dolphins carried souls to the “Isles of the Blessed.” Images of these animals have been found on the arms of Roman mummies, presumably to ensure their safe passage to afterlife.

23. Some dolphins are able to understand about 60 words, which can amount to 2000 sentences. This is a clear sign that these animals are self-aware.

24. Dolphins do not have a sense of smell, but they have a sense of taste and, like humans, are able to distinguish between sweet, sour, bitter and salty tastes.

25. And the last of the most interesting facts about dolphins is that these animals are capable of killing a shark. They do this with powerful blows to their noses and foreheads.