Quick Facts
- Type
- Mammal
- Size
- 2–4 m long
- Weight
- 150–300 kg
- Habitat
- Warm and temperate seas worldwide
- Diet
- Fish, squid, and crustaceans
- Active Time
- Active day and night
- Lifespan
- 20–40 years or more
Field Notes
- Each dolphin has a signature whistle that works like its own name.
- They find prey using echolocation, sending out clicks and reading the echoes.
- Dolphins sleep with one half of the brain at a time so they can keep breathing.
About the Bottlenose Dolphin
The bottlenose dolphin is a highly intelligent marine mammal found in warm and temperate seas worldwide. Sleek and grey with a short beak and a permanent 'smile', it is one of the most familiar of all cetaceans. Dolphins live in social groups called pods and cooperate to hunt fish and squid, using echolocation, bursts of clicks, to find prey in murky water. They communicate with whistles, and each dolphin develops a signature whistle that works like a name. Curious and playful, they often ride the bow waves of boats.
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