There is a lot of information that anyone interested in these animals should appreciate. There are plenty of great facts about them that you will learn when you get done reading this! Some are basic, others entertaining and many are simply amazing.1. Dolphins are odontocete cetaceans. The order Cetacea includes a group of mammals fully adapted to life in the ocean, and the suborder Odontoceti includes those with teeth.

2. The closest relatives of dolphins are whales and porpoises. All are members of the order Cetacea.

3. Dolphins are mammals; warm-blooded animals which give birth to live offspring and feed them with breast milk from the mother.

4. They do not have hair on the skin. Only a small accumulation of thin hair near the spiracle and in some other places. Only the Boto, Amazon River Dolphin, has a small amount of hair that they keep as an adult.

5. Dolphins are the only mammals that give birth to its offspring delivering the tail first instead of the head.

6. Like whales, manatees, seals, walruses and porpoises, they are mammals that live permanently in an aquatic environment.

7. Apparently, dolphins sleep resting one side of the brain at a time.
Thanks to its bone structure and its ability to hold air in the lungs for a long time, dolphins can rest underwater. However, they need to breathe regularly. Therefore, some degree of awareness is necessary, and one side of the brain remain active, while the other part rests.

8. Dolphins can communicate with each other by emitting a variety of sounds.

9. Dolphins do not have a good sense of smell.

10. Dolphins can swim at a speed of up to 25 miles per hour for a long time; This is about three times faster than the fastest humans in the world.

11. Dolphins inhabit all seas of the world.

12. Most species live in salt water, but some dwell in fresh or brackish waters.

13. All dolphins are carnivores.

14. There are about 100 teeth in the mouth of a dolphin, but the amount varies among species. However, they use the teeth to grab their prey, but they don’t chew it. All food is swallowed whole.

15. Dolphins can hear a frequency range ten times broader than that of a human being.

16. Dolphins are mostly larger than porpoises. However, some species of dolphins are the smallest cetaceans.

17. Mothers breastfeed calves for 2 or 3 years.

18. The lower limbs of dolphins are vestigial legs because millions of years ago they could walk on land.

19. There are about 43 species of dolphins. But the number keeps changing because of new discoveries and new taxonomic classifications.

20. There have been cases of attacks on humans, but they are very rare. Even though dolphins are usually very mild tempered, they can be aggressive.

21. At birth, calves weigh approximately 10 kilos and measure around one meter. This weight increases up to 7 times during the first year of life.

22. Many individuals have been seen making jumps in front of the ships and following the bow waves.

23. The teeth of dolphins work as a kind of antenna to pick up the sounds bounced back during echolocation.

24. Dolphins enjoy socializing and playing. They have been seen playing with small objects and with other dolphins. They play with seaweed or with other members of the pod. Sometimes, they will tease other living creatures in the water.

25. They are social animals and can live in groups called pods that can have hundreds of members or even join with other groups creating superpods with thousands of individuals.

26. The favorite foods of many species of dolphins are fish, octopus, and squid.

27. The gestation period in most species lasts between 10 and 12 months.

28. The Killer Whale (Orcinus orca) is the largest dolphin. It can measure up to 30 feet in length.

29. Dolphins detect prey and objects using their echolocation, that is, by interpreting the echo of sound waves bounced back by the target.

30. They have very delicate skin, which can easily be injured.

31. Dolphins have an organ called melon in the head that emits the sound waves used for echolocation.

32. The dolphin’s brain is similar in size to that of humans.
Their brains are 4-5 times larger than those of other animals of similar size.

33. Dolphins can recognize themselves in the mirrors which mean that they are self-aware, an indicator of intelligence.

34. Dolphins’ eyes can move separately from each other.

35. Bycatch is one of the main threats to the survival of dolphins.

36. Their main natural predators are sharks and ironically, orcas.

37. The Amazon River Dolphin or Boto is the largest dolphin that dwells in freshwater. They can be up to 10 feet long.

38. The Amazon river dolphins (Inia geoffrensis) can swim backward. So far, researchers unknown the exact reason for this behavior, but it is presumed to be related to searching food.

39. Dolphins have two stomachs just like cows. The first one stores the food and the second is where digestion takes place.

40. Some dolphin species can submerge up to 1,000 feet.

41. The dorsal fin on each dolphin is unique, and it can be used to identify them from each other.

42. The average lifespan of dolphins is around 17 years. However, some species in the wild live about 50 years.

43. Some dolphins need to breathe every 20 seconds, but others need to do it every 30 minutes.

44. The bonds between the members of a pod are very tight. They have been observed helping sick, elderly, and injured peers.

45. Dolphins can see well in the water due to the way their retina collects the light.

46. The brain of dolphins is the second largest ratio between size compared to its body size; only behind humans.

47. It is possible for a mature dolphin to eat up to 30 pounds of fish per day.

48. Some dolphins can leap up to twenty feet in the air.

49. Dolphins often use a hunting technique consisting in surrounding a school of fish, so they make a tight group. Then they will take turns going through the center of the accumulation to feed.

50. Global warming continues to be a problem for dolphins as it has reduced their food supply significantly.

51. Dolphins can migrate looking for food and reach parts of the ocean where the temperatures are right for them. Not all species of dolphins migrate.

52. Dolphins perform several feeding strategies to capture prey. Most involve cooperation among the pod members.

53. The smallest dolphins are about 4 feet long with the longest being 30 feet long. They can weigh from 90 pounds to more than 11 tons.

54. The flukes are the two parts of the tail of a dolphin.

55. All dolphins have a blowhole at the top where they breathe.

56. Dolphins have a great healing process even when they have deep wounds such as those that are the result of shark bites. Experts haven’t been able to determine how this is possible for dolphins when other mammals would die from a hemorrhage.

57. Dolphins are incredibly intelligent creatures, known for their ability to recognize themselves in mirrors and communicate with each other using distinct whistles. Learn more about this fascinating fact of the day.

killer whale factsKiller whales, also known as Orcas (Orcinus orca) are fascinating creatures that attract a great deal of attention from marine biologists, as well as the general public.

Orcas are Apex predators and adults do not have any other threat in ocean than humans, Research is always being done about Killer Whales, and new facts about their habits, socialization, intelligence, and travel patterns are discovered continuosly.

Here are the top facts that make this cetacean so unique to the general public as well as to the scientists.

• Killer Whales are one of the fastest creatures in the sea, traveling up to 30 miles per hour.
• Killer Whales are able to control the flow of blood to their hearts and brains, which keeps them from suffering from a lack of oxygen when they are deep underwater.
• Killer Whales eat up to 5% of their body weight each day. This averages out to over 500 pounds of food for each Orca.
• Killer Whales do most of their socialization within their own pods. However, pods do socialize with other pods as well.
• When breeding, Killer Whales do not breed with relatives. They only breed with killer whales that are not closely related to them within their own pods.
• Killer Whales are called “Killer Whales” because they feed on other dolphins and smaller whales, not because they kill people. They are also know as orcas.
• The only recorded instances of a killer whale attacking a human being have been of attacks by Orcas held in captivity. No killer whale that lives in the wilds has ever attacked a human being.
• Killer Whales eat up to 5% of their body weight each day. This averages out to over 500 pounds of food”.

• Every Killer Whale has a mark behind it’s dorsal fin that is totally unique. These marks are used by humans to distinguish one killer whale from another, just as humans each have their own specific characteristics that make our appearances different from every one else’s.
• Killer Whales use vocalization to communicate with each other, but each pod has it’s own unique ‘accent,’ which makes it easy for Orcas to identify members of their own pods.
• Pods of killer whales are found in all oceans in the world, but the greatest numbers are found in cooler waters.
• Killer Whales are actually dolphins. In fact, they are the largest dolphins in existence, and can be up to 30 feet or more in length, and weigh up to 12,000 pounds.
• Killer Whale brain is five times larger than a humans. They are very social, intelligent, and curious. killer whales brains that have been studied with microscopes have proven to be as structured and developed as the human brain.
• Killer Whales have very organized and complex social structures, and divide themselves in pods, which operate as human families do. They protect their young, ill, and injured within their pods.
• Killer Whales spend 60% of their time foraging for food. killer whales do not migrate, but they have been known to travel hundreds of miles to find fresh food that is in ‘season.’
• Life expectancy of a Killer Whale in the wild is 50 – 60 years for males, and up to 90 years for females, however, Killer Whales held in captivity have not lived longer than 30 years, and the average life expectancy for captive Orcas is only 20 years.
• Female Killer whales usually do not breed until they are between the ages of 12 and 16 years old. Their gestation period is 15 – 17 months, as opposed to 9 months for humans. They nurse their calves for up to 2 years. On an average, each female Orca that lives in the wilds will have approximately five calves during her lifetime.

1. Bottlenose Dolphins are mammals.

Bottlenose dolphins nurse their calves with milk from mammary glands of the mothers.

2. Bottlenose Dolphins can swim up to 260 m. below the surface of the ocean.

However they need quick access to air in the surface, therefore bottlenose dolphins usually are shallow divers and close to the surface.

3. Bottlenose Dolphins can stay up to 15 minutes under water.

However bottlenose dolphins usually stay only a few minutes diving.

4. Bottlenose Dolphins use a technique called echolocation to find food and navigate.

This technique is performed by sending ultrasounds through the water which is bounced back to the dolphin and then is detected by the dolphin in an organ called mellon which decodes the message very much like a sonar.

5. Bottlenose Dolphins are social beings.

Bottlenose dolphins cooperate among each to get food. To do this, they work in teams to optimize the effort of hunting.

They also cooperate for calf rising, when usually one dolphin helps the mother to take care of the calves, very much like a midwife.

 6. The bottlenose dolphin can grow up to 2.8 meters.

While there are some other smaller species, there are some species much bigger like the killer whale.

“The most popular dolphin is the Bottlenose Dolphin as it is the one we have seen in tv series, movies, and aquatic shows”

7 . Bottlenose Dolphins are warm-blooded.

Their internal temperature is around 36 degrees. To keep this temperature they are surrounded by a thick layer of fat called “blubber” just below the skin. This fat, allow dolphins to resist cold temperatures and regulate their body temperature.

8 . The average bottlenose dolphin brain weighs 1500-1600 grams.

If this is compared with the average human brain which weighs between 1200-1300 grs. Bottlenose dolphin brain is larger, however this is not a conclusive evidence of dolphin intelligence as many other factors might be the cause of intelligence according to scientists, however this brain capacity is a clear indication that dolphins have at least the potential of higher intelligence.

9. Bottlenose Dolphins are great communicators.

They can make a unique signature whistle that may help individual dolphins recognize each other or perform any other kind of communication still unknown. Dolphins even make noises so loud that can stunt fish.

10. Bottlenose dolphins can swim 5 to 12 kilometers per hour.

Although they can reach up to 32 km/h.