Born tail first, bottlenose dolphin calves emerge equipped with two slender rows of whiskers along their beak-like snouts much like the touch-sensitive whiskers of seals. But the whiskers fall out soon after birth, leaving the youngster with a series of dimples known as vibrissal pits. Recently, Tim Hüttner and Guido Dehnhardt, from the University of Rostock, Germany, began to suspect that the dimples may be more than just a relic.
A team of marine biologists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, working with a pair of colleagues from the Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific, has found that dolphin calves born to mothers in the U.S. Navy Marine Mammal Program consume milk that contains high amounts of persistent organic pollutants (POPs).
A study published Monday found that female bottlenose dolphins change their tone when addressing their calves. Researchers recorded the signature whistles of 19 mother dolphins in Florida, when accompanied by their young offspring and when swimming alone or with other adults.
The reason for frequent mass whale strandings remains a mystery. According to research from Aberystwyth University, pilot whales that became stranded in the northeast Atlantic and the Falkland Islands came from separate family groupings.
The US Navy's cameras on dolphins recorded some bizarre and outlandish footage. Our first-ever film from the perspective of dolphins freely hunting off the coast of North America is composed of a swarm of clicks and triumphant squeals.