Their unique habitat needs limit where they can survive, and these small populations frequently come into contact with humans. While Irrawaddy dolphins look a little like a baby beluga whale, they are not closely related. Rounded bodies with tapered tails, broad & rounded heads, & smooth grey & white skin Irrawaddy Dolphin Facts Overview Habitat:īangladesh, India, Cambodia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Myanmar, & Thailand Irrawaddy dolphins have rounded heads with short snub noses, unlike many other dolphins. These aquatic mammals live in small populations throughout parts of southeast Asia where salt water and freshwater mix. The mother causes the umbilical cord to break by swimming quickly away, immediately returning to her calf to take it up to the surface so it can breathe.Irrawaddy dolphins (Orcaella brevirostris) are a species of oceanic dolphins. A calf is born tail-first so that it will not drown.They do have a sense of taste, being able to distinguish between sweet, sour, salty, and bitter tastes. Bottlenose dolphins are lacking a sense of smell.A dolphin's eyes produce "dolphin tears," a secretion that protects their eyes against infection and foreign objects.The blowhole is a nose that has evolved and moved toward the top of the head of the dolphin.The United States and Russian military train bottlenose dolphins for marine tasks, such as detecting sea mines and enemy divers.When the left brain is asleep, their right eye is shut and vice versa. To keep from drowning when asleep only half of their brain goes to sleep. When sleeping, bottlenose dolphins have one eye open while the other is closed.One that was named Percy lived off the coast of Cornwall in England and followed the local fishing boats, was seen playing with their crab pots and would allow strangers to hold onto his dorsal fin while pulling them through the water. Bottlenose dolphins sometimes interact with humans.Bottlenose dolphins love riding on the bow waves behind boats.The presence of bottlenose dolphins indicates a healthy marine ecosystem. Ecological nicheĭolphins have an important part of the ecosystem in that they are top-level predators, controlling populations of fish and squid and keeping the ecosystem balanced and healthy. Overall, currently, Common bottlenose dolphins are classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Populations have been estimated for a few specific areas: northern Gulf of Mexico - 52,000, the eastern coast of North America - 126,000, eastern tropical Pacific - 243,500, Hawaii waters - 3,215, coastal California waters - 323, Japanese waters - 168,000, western European continental shelf waters - 12,600, Mediterranean Sea - fewer than 10,000, Black Sea - at least several thousand. Population numberĪccording to IUCN Red List, the minimum worldwide estimate for the Common bottlenose dolphin is 600,000 individuals. Fishing operations can injure or drown dolphins when they get accidentally caught in gear and nets. Hunting still occurs in Peru, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Japan, and other parts of the world. As these dolphins are coastal creatures, they are affected by pollution, heavy boat traffic, and habitat destruction. Climate change is the main threat to bottlenose dolphins, due to the warming of seas and oceans, sending dolphins to colder waters outside their habitual ranges.
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