LESSON 2 - SeaTrek Programs

How else do dolphins communicate?
Dolphins make other, non-vocal sounds. All marine mammals are able to produce and use non-vocal sounds
for communication, feeding purposes, and/or defense. This often includes slapping a body part against the
surface of the water. This action make both a sound and splash. Tail or fluke slapping is common in the dolphin
population.
Other parts of the dolphin's body that are typically used in producing noise in a slapping manner are pectoral
fins and the body as a whole during lunges and breaches. These gestures may be done for the purposes
of communication, hunting, or simply for fun.
Touch is an important means of communication as well. Dolphins often rub against one another, especially
those in close relationships, such as bonded males and mothers and calves who swim close to one another in a
synchronous behavior that non-verbally communicates their affection.
Dolphins sometimes show aggression towards one another by charging with mouth open, making a loud popping
sound by clapping their jaw either above or below water, or even raking their teeth across the skin of
another dolphin.
What future studies are planned?
Scientists believe that dolphins communicate using other senses besides sound. These include magnetic reception,
their sense of touch, and chemical detection through their ability to taste. These have not been studied
as well as sound, but are starting to receive more attention. Much of what scientists are able to learn depends
on the research tools and techniques that the scientists themselves discover and develop. With advances
in technology, new tools can be used to learn more about dolphins without greatly disturbing their
natural behaviors.
In order to do many of these studies, researchers continue to share and borrow information from others that
study dolphins. Many of these studies depend on researchers identifying individual dolphins, knowing which
dolphins were related to each other, and knowing which dolphins spent time with one another. Luckily, there
are scientists keeping records of dolphin identifications, studying dolphin behaviors, and social groupings.
For example, since there were other researchers recording sighting information, the researchers doing studies
on whether dolphins recognize certain signature whistles over other whistles were able to play recorded signature
whistles to individual dolphins that they were sure were from known or unknown dolphins. This is an
example of how different dolphin researchers share the information they gather through their different studies.
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