The beautiful bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus, is a fairly common marine mammal that is found worldwide, though their total population is unknown. They can be found in the Pacific, Atlantic or Indian Ocean waters, as well as in gulfs and river mouths all around the world. They range in size from 6.5 feet to nearly 12 feet in length, and can weigh up to 1,100 pounds.
General coloration is a dark gray or black back with a creamy colored underside. Bottlenose dolphins can be distinguished from other dolphins by their sickle-shaped dorsal fin and short, roundish beak. They breathe through a blow hole located just in front of their dorsal fin, which can open and close to breathe in and exhale out.
Bottlenose dolphins usually swim from about three to seven miles per hour, and their underwater dives last about eight to ten minutes. These graceful mammals have a lifespan of approximately 40 years. The main diet of a bottlenose dolphin consists of crustaceans, squid, fish, and mollusks. Some dolphins have even been seen following fishing boats in order to catch any prey that may fall out of their nets. Adults usually eat about four-five percent of their body weight each day. Echolocation, the release of high-pitched sounds that bounce off the surroundings and back to the dolphin, is used to find and capture prey.
Bottlenose dolphins live in pods of anywhere from five to several hundred animals. However, in the summers of 2005 and 2009, a 1,500-2,000 dolphin super pod was spotted off the coast of Pembrokeshire, Wales. The super pod consisted of many other pods coming together to feed on a large school of fish. They are very playful marine creatures and will often leap out of the water (also called breaching), slap the surface of the water with their fins, and follow close to boats and ships.
These dolphins are the most common species to be seen in zoos and aquariums, as they are fast learners and can perform amazing stunts for audiences. Typically, the dolphins will not reach maturity until they are ten to fifteen years old, with females becoming mature faster than males. Bottlenose dolphins have an intricate mating ritual and can mate all year round, though the peak mating season is between March and April.
Males often fight voraciously with each other over females, and the larger males seem to generally be the first to mate. The dolphins gestation times vary between nine and seventeen months. Once a calf is born, it may be cared for by the mother for up to six years, which is longer than most other dolphin species.
The major threats to this species of dolphin are habitat depletion, pollution, entanglement in fishing nets, boat traffic, climate change, and illegal harvesting. At the moment, dolphins are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 in U.S. waters, however a common threat around the world is commercial fishing of tuna. Dolphins and tuna often swim together, and dolphins sadly can often become caught and entangled in fishing nets.
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Interested in viewing these beautiful mammals on a dolphin watching trip? They can often be found in Cardigan Bay, West Wales.
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