Dolphins are one of the most beautiful animals in the word. Dolphins are
mammals and are part of the Delphinidae family. This family contains various
highly intelligent aquatic mammals. The name dolphin refers to the species that
a have a beak like snout and a slender streamline body which helps them to swim
at high speeds. Some species can swim up to speeds of 35 mph. Dolphins have a
rubbery feeling skin that is hairless; this helps them swim through the water
with little resistance. Their skin is very sensitive and has no protection from
bumps or bruises. This is because the outer layer is made up entirely live
cells. Since the outer layer is made up out of live cells it is shed every two
hours to keep the cells fresh. Dolphins use their flukes to swim through the
water by beating the flukes up and down. Men have studied dolphin’s flukes on
a dolphin to improve the effectiveness of submarine and boat propellers. The
feeding habits of a dolphin vary; it depends on what is available at the time. A
simple meal contains of small fish or squid. Many have to go where the food is
and look to find their food. Dolphins use their teeth to catch the food, yet
they do not use their teeth to eat the food because they swallow it hole.
Dolphins do not have the best eyesight. They rely on echolocation to help them
get where they are going. Echolocation is the use of using sounds to see what is
going on up ahead. They make a clicking noise, which is used to find if objects
are up ahead. This is because if the noise bounce back they know that there is
an object up ahead. They also use this for communicating with other dolphins.
Dolphins are found in many different parts of the world in various oceans and
even in some freshwater rivers in Asia, Africa, and South America. The river
dolphins are in danger of extinction because of pollution and dams. The main
place to see dolphins is in the warm waters of the pacific area. The main
dolphins seen are the White-bellied dolphins and the Bottle-nosed dolphins. The
most common dolphin can be found in all temperatures and tropical sees. This
dolphin is dark above, white below, and has bands of gray white and yellow on
the sides. Dolphins sleep in a semi-alert. This is because they have to protect
themselves for the dangers of people and other animals they do this by resting
one side of their brain at a time. Dolphins usually stay in-groups of twenty
when they are in the coastal areas. When they are out in the sea they are
usually in bigger groups. This is because dolphins help each other. They
communicate with one another and when one dolphin is sick or injured they help
out that dolphin as much as they can. They also work as teams if danger is near
by. Dolphins are very intelligent and can be taught to do many different tricks.
Maybe one of the most dangers a dolphin has is a human. This is because of the
ways of tuna fishing. Fishermen were aware of the fact that schools of dolphins
and tuna move together. Tuna seem to follow dolphins very closely. Fisherman
used to put down nets to catch the tuna, but they would also catch the dolphins.
They would bring up the tuna and the dolphins in the nets. They then would
separate the tuna from the dolphins and through back the dolphins no matter if
they were injured or dead. This was not very good for the dolphins so the
government has now stepped in and the dolphins are now safe. Dolphins may be
neat to look at when you are out in the water and they are swimming freely but
they shouldn’t be bothered. These dolphins should be left alone; many people
are feeding the dolphins junk food and swimming with them, which puts the
dolphins in danger. The dolphins are eating food that they are not used to and
when they have their babies the babies are dying. Many studies have proven that
they are dying because of malnutrition the food that they are getting is not
healthy for them to grow. Dolphins are loved all over the world. Hopefully they
will be here for along time. People should stop hurting dolphins and let them do
what they want freely.



Bibliography

Connor,
Richard “The Lives of Whales and Dolphins” Henry Holt and Company New York,
New York 1994 Cousteau, Jacques-Yves and Diole, Philippe “Dolphins” Federal
Republic of Germany 1975 Encyclopedia Britannica CD ROM Seideman, David
“Swimming With Trouble”Audubon September-October 1997 pg.76