Dolphins

Some years ago, my family and I were vacationing in Florida's Everglades National Park. One day we took a boat ride to Cape Sable, the southernmost point in the continental U.S. On the way back, a small pod of dolphins swam alongside of our boat for a ways, leaping frequently out of the water, presumably either to get a better look at us or simply to have fun. The show was fascinating to watch. Also fascinating was that the boat was moving at a pretty good pace, yet the dolphins had no trouble keeping up with us.

That was roughly four decades ago, and though I remember the episode vividly, I'm not sure what kind of dolphins they were. My guess is that they were bottlenose dolphins, today's demo subject.

Something about Dolphins: Dolphins, porpoises, and whales are all part of the cetacean (derived from the Greek word for "huge fish") family. These water mammals have long fascinated humans, and they have been features of folklore for millennia. This article tells a little about it.

One species of dolphin, the orca or killer whale, is often depicted in Tlingit Indian art. The Tlingit Indians are one of the coastal tribes in northwestern North America that make totem poles. Here is one of their orca images.

Dolphins and porpoises are often confused with each other, but they are different species. Dolphins tend to have prominent, elongated “beaks” and cone-shaped teeth, while porpoises have smaller mouths and spade-shaped teeth. The dolphin’s hooked or curved dorsal fin also differs from the porpoise’s triangular dorsal fin. Generally speaking, dolphin bodies are leaner, and porpoises’ are portly. Dolphins are also more talkative than porpoises. Dolphins make whistling sounds through their blowholes to communicate with one another underwater. Scientists are pretty sure that porpoises do not do this, and some think this may be due to structural differences in the porpoise’s blowhole. Both animals are extremely intelligent.

There are five families of dolphins. The ocean dolphin family has 38 members. The other four, all types of river dolphins, have a single member each. The appearance of the various kinds of dolphins can vary considerably. I encourage you to look them up, but here are pictures of a few of them.