Everything We Know About Dolphin Intelligence

Dolphins. Their graceful beauty and whimsical behavior endear them to humans unlike any other animals. With a perpetual smile, soulful eyes, and intelligence we can only begin to understand, dolphins never cease to fascinate us. Today we'll visit with dolphins both in the wild and in captive environments. We'll join an expedition in the Bahamas to photograph and study Atlantic spotted dolphins. We'll also travel to the Pacific Northwest and Mexico's Sea of Cortez for encounters with Pacific white-sided and bottlenose dolphins. And finally, we'll examine a special program where scuba divers can interact with semi-captive trained dolphins in the open ocean. Of all the mammals, none have inspired our affection as much as dolphins. Intrigued by these creatures of myth and magic, we've longed to explore the mystery that surrounds them. There is no denying that people are drawn to dolphins. The question is, why? We envy their acrobatic abilities and regardless of scientific explanation, remain convinced that the main purpose of these antics is sheer pleasure. We suspect that they have a keen sense of humor, great intelligence, and the ability to communicate even though these are generally considered human attributes. We know that the family of toothed whales, which includes dolphins, uses echolocation to see with sound waves, but we can't grasp how it works because we simply can never experience it ourselves. It's because of these unique behaviors and other remarkable traits that whales, and especially dolphins, maintain such enigmatic allure. There is a trend within the evolution of animals towards the colonization of land. However, a small group of mammals reverse this process. Whales, dolphins, and porpoises are mammals that have returned to the sea, their ancestors once having lived on land. This select group of animals also includes manatees, sea lions, and seals. All have similar characteristics. They breathe air and are warm-blooded. But this is where the similarities end. The family Delphinidae is the largest of the cetacean families. It includes many familiar species such as killer whales and dolphins. They are highly social animals with complex behaviors. They use high-pitched squeaks and clicks to locate prey and are also able to communicate with each other. Their bodies are slender and streamlined with well-developed dorsal fins and tail flukes. Like fish, dolphins have perfected ways to push their bodies through the water with less effort. Even their skin is highly specialized, hydrodynamic, and as smooth as patent leather. Recent research has shown that the actual structure of their skin responds to water movement. The skin absorbs the small eddies which form as the animal speeds through the water. This keeps a smooth stream of water moving past the dolphin and is termed laminar flow. They are indeed the kings of undersea speed and agility. Nowhere are dolphins' remarkable swimming abilities more evident than in the bow or wake of a moving ship. They are able to ride the pressure wave created as a boat's hull pushes water forward. The dolphin simply surfs the wave, expanding little energy and stay in place. Calves of all species use this same principle, which is called drafting, utilizing a larger moving body, in this case their mother, to push them through the water. The calves take advantage of the decreased resistance and additional thrust created by water rushing between their two bodies. Biologists refer to the overall body shape of most dolphins as fusiform, meaning cylindrical with tapered ends, a little like a torpedo. Active, fast-moving species such as the spotted dolphin are excellent examples of classic fusiform shape, a design that lends itself to speed. As a general rule, longer and more streamlined animals encounter less resistance and friction in the water and in turn are faster swimmers. Dolphins are a very tactile group. They seem to thrive on physical contact and touch. Mothers often keep a flipper in contact with their calves. Captive animals respond eagerly to back rubs and massages. Like humans, dolphins have very sensitive skin as well as highly developed areas in the brain which interpret these tactile sensations. While the ability to taste or smell is limited, the sense of touch is vital and therefore well developed. Dolphins breathe through specialized blow holes and, unlike land mammals, are unable to inhale or exhale through their mouths. Their remarkable vocal repertoire is generated through the larynx, which is also part of their respiratory system. Dolphins can be found in every part of the marine environment, from the coral reefs and sandy flats of tropical seas to the frigid waters of the polar regions. Anyone who has seen a wild dolphin knows the incredible appeal these animals have. We want to interact with them, to have them accept our presence, especially in the water. But encounters with wild dolphins are rare and seldom last very long. Stories of unique social animals like Jojo, a bottlenose dolphin in the Turks and Caicos Islands are well known, but such willing participants are the exception. In a small corner of the Bahamas, a few isolated groups of Atlantic spotted dolphins tolerate the presence of snorkelers and divers. Over the course of several years, the dolphins have grown accustomed to the frequent marine traffic between the Bahamas and the Florida coast. After surfing in the bow or stern wakes, the dolphins would sometimes hang around after the vessel stopped. Snorkelers, quick to jump overboard, were sometimes blessed with a brief encounter with the dolphins. Over time, the animals became more tolerant of human visitors. We began our journey on the island of Grand Bahama at Port Lucaya. Here we joined the live-aboard dive vessel Sea Fever. We traveled aboard Sea Fever approximately 35 miles north of Grand Bahama to an area situated on the edge of the Gulf Stream. White Sand Ridge is located on the northwest part of the Little Bahama Bay. This sandy shoal is home to approximately 100 Atlantic spotted dolphins and a similar number of bottlenose dolphins. Once in the open ocean, we began our search. Captain Tom Guarino has over 20 years experience in these waters and knows where to find the animals. After a few hours, we encountered the first small group of spotted dolphins. Snorkelers quickly geared up and jumped in. Our first encounter lasted only a few brief seconds, and the snorkelers were then instructed to return to the swim grid. Captain Guarino tries to attract the dolphins back to the boat by creating a large wake. Okay, what we're doing, we've spotted the dolphins in the area here, and they're very amused by riding the pressure wave on the bow of the boat or surfing in our wake. So we throw up a big wake and the dolphins come over and they surf our wake and after they've been in the wake a while and they've played and jumped and stuff, we'll stop the boat and they're usually tolerant of everybody getting in the water then and swimming with them. On the second pass around, cameraman Neil McDaniel has enough time to gear up in scuba. Over the course of a week, the group of photographers and snorkelers were rewarded with over a dozen encounters with the dolphins. More experienced snorkelers were able to freedive. The dolphins seemed to react better with the freedivers, while with scuba gear, the animals were a little harder to approach, perhaps because of the noise of the regulators. After several days, the dolphins were more at ease with the divers and cameramen were able to capture these stunning images. Spotted dolphins are highly social and are often observed in groups of more than a hundred. These groups are made up of both sexes and all ages. They are circumtropical, found in the Pacific and Indian oceans, the Caribbean, Red Sea, South China Sea and the tropical Atlantic. Newborns are uniformly gray in color, developing spots only when they start to mature. The older the animal, the more spots they usually have. Spotted dolphins are a widespread and abundant species. One of the dolphins displayed its remarkable echolocation talents to find a hidden fish. Even in dark or murky water, dolphins can use their sonar to detect the location and shape of objects, including prey. These spotted dolphins feed mainly on small fish that inhabit the shallow, sandy bottom. Razorfish are a favorite prey, and even though they dive into burrows, they are no match for the dolphin. Much research is required before we can understand the way in which dolphins produce and interpret sound and combine the two abilities in echolocation. They are able to direct or focus a beam of sound. The returning echolocation may be picked up with its lower jaw, or by the ear canals, or with both. There may even be other, as yet undiscovered, ways in which they sense and interpret their environment. Lady Godiva, Lady Godiva, Gypsy 2. Gypsy 2, this is Lady Godiva, go ahead. Yeah, hi Bill, if you're interested, we've got a whole bunch of Pacific white-sided dolphins over near Davy Rock here. There's probably, oh, 50 of them or so. Might like to bring your divers over this way. Real good, thanks very much for the information. Off Canada's western coast live large groups of up to 1,000 Pacific white-sided dolphins. They range from southeastern Alaska all the way to the Baja Peninsula of Mexico. In the western Pacific, they've been reported from southern Russia to the Sea of Japan. At the northern tip of British Columbia's Vancouver Island, the annual migration south is responsible for dolphin encounters in the fall months. Like their spotted cousins, Pacific white-sided dolphins will tolerate and sometimes interact with divers and snorkelers. They are gregarious animals, traveling together with other dolphins of all ages and both sexes. In order to swim with them, divers must wear thick dry suits or wet suits to insulate them from the cold water. The dolphins are protected from the 40-degree water by an insulating layer of fat or blubber, much like their larger relatives, the whales. Thousands of miles from the tropical Atlantic, they display the same playful bow-riding behavior of spotted dolphins in the Bahamas. In the waters of Mexico's Sea of Cortez, divers occasionally encounter Pacific bottlenose dolphins. Much larger than white-sided or spotted dolphins, these animals can attain lengths of over 12 feet. The bottlenose inhabits both tropical and temperate seas. They are the world's most widespread and abundant species of dolphin. These animals are the species most frequently seen in seaquariums and marine parks. They adapt very well to captivity and are relatively easy to train. Today, a select group of diving operations has started special dolphin programs where people can interact with semi-captive, socialized animals. One such operation is UNEXO, the Underwater Explorer Society, located on Grand Bahama. Although each program has its own methods, the dolphins are generally free to leave their employment at any time. They typically spend their nights within enclosures, but each day are able to venture into the open ocean, followed by a boatload of human admirers. Surfing alongside of the boats, the dolphins follow their trainers to a shallow reef. Here, divers are instructed how to act around the dolphins and what signals to use to communicate with them. Once in the water, humans are able to watch the dolphins in their own environment. The animals may play with each other, interact with the divers and trainers, or simply keep themselves amused. Occasionally, a dolphin may decide not to head back to the enclosure right away and will veer off to cavort with some wild dolphins. Although the trainers try to keep an eye on their charges and encourage them to return, the choice is ultimately the dolphins. The programs that we have here at the Dolphin Experience enhance a person's awareness of the animals and the fact that they're interactive programs. People have an opportunity to see these animals up close, to interact with them face-to-face. The dolphin dive, for example, you're a mile offshore, you're in 40 or 50 feet of water, you're in the animal's environment. The dolphins at the Dolphin Experience certainly can leave. We take them out to the ocean every day and yet they come back. This has become their home. They know that it's safe here. They know that they're not going to get attacked by predatory sharks. Dolphins out in the ocean are oftentimes killed by sharks. And the dolphins have also figured out that they're going to get anywhere between 18 to 20 pounds of free fish here. They don't have to chase it down. Working with dolphins in captivity and training them to perform is a very out-of-the-ordinary job. All training is done by positive reinforcement or rewarding the animal for appropriate behavior. The dolphins also respond to other rewards like rubbing or belly scratches. Most trainers believe that dolphins are extroverts and enjoy the attention of adoring crowds. Each trainer gets to know the personalities or dolphinalities of each animal so they can work together more effectively. Hand signals and whistles are used to communicate with dolphins. Most behaviors or stunts such as lobtailing are based on natural behaviors they display in the wild. The only thing learned by both trainer and cetacean is communication or which hand signal or whistle is associated with which behavior. This is Keholo. He's a young male. He's a two and a half year old male. And he's actually the second dolphin to be born here to go out to the open ocean. He's in training for the dive for the dolphins. Our dolphins, we go through about 200 to 300 pounds of fish a day for all of our dolphins. Our dolphins will receive anywhere between 18 to almost 30 pounds of fish per dolphin per day which comes to about 200 to 300 pounds of fish a day that we go through here at the Dolphin Experience. Whales and dolphins in captivity always draw huge crowds. Most institutions with captive cetaceans are also involved in ongoing research to learn more about the behavior and biology of these animals. Although there are opponents to dolphin captivity and these types of programs, many people believe that education and research may be the only hope for these remarkable creatures and the overall health of the marine ecosystem. Dolphins demonstrate their intelligence by repeatedly displaying their great capacity to learn. Like learning, communication is also recognized as a characteristic of higher animals. And apart from humans, no other group seems to have mastered the skills of communication as well as dolphins and whales. Both in captivity and in the wild, dolphins continue to astound man, the self-proclaimed master of intelligence.