dolphin

[hǎi tún]
Cetacean aquatic mammals
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Dolphins are mammals of the cetacean dolphin family. [17 ] Its trunk is spindle shaped, smooth and smooth, and its skin is smooth and hairless; The head features prominent features, and the forehead protrudes in front of the beak; Having a hooked dorsal fin. Some dolphins have eye-catching color patterns on their body surface, while others have monotonous colors. [19] It is named "Dolphin" because its round body looks like a pig of several hundred jin. [18 ]
Dolphins are distributed in the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean. [20 ] It lives in tropical and temperate waters and is agile and sentimental. [21 ] Dolphins like to live in groups. They often travel in groups of several to several hundred to chase ships, [23 ] Or pack fish for feeding; [22 ] They mostly feed on small fish, shrimp, squid, crab, etc. [24 ] Dolphin mating occurs in summer and autumn; The gestation period is about 11 months. The service life can be as long as 25 years or even 30 years. [25 ]
Dolphinidae is a relatively modern species group evolved in the late Miocene about 10 million years ago. They are the most abundant and diverse species of all cetaceans. [26 ] Dolphins are very intelligent animals and are protected in many countries. They are good friends with human beings. They will stand up to help human beings when they are in danger and play the role of "lifeguards at sea". [27 ] Dolphins can not only save people in times of crisis, but also are talented performers who can perform many wonderful programs, such as drilling iron rings, playing basketball, interacting with people and making calls. More importantly, dolphins can use the voice to convey identity and location information to connect with their peers. [28 ]
Chinese name
Dolphin (ancient name: sea 6 / hog Fish and beast Fish civet Dolphinfish; Minnan: sea pig, sea pig piglets)
Foreign name
Oceanic dolphins, Dolphins, Delphis, Delphinids
circles
Animal kingdom Animalia
door
Chordate Chordata
Outline
Mammalia Mammalia
order
Cetaceans Cetacea [29]
Inferior order
whale Cetacea
Suborder
Toothed whales Odontoceti
Evolutionary branch
Dolphinoid Delphinida
General Section
Dolphinoidea Delphinoidea
section
Delphinidae Gray, 1821

History of Zoology

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Dolphinidae is a relatively modern species group evolved in the late Miocene about 10 million years ago. They are the most abundant and diverse species of all cetaceans. [26 ]

Classification

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Killer whale Little tiger whale Pseudo killer whale Melon headed whale And 2 Pilot whale These six "black whales" are classified under Dolphinidae. [1]
Dolphins (especially Bottlenose dolphin )It can be widely hybridized with different subfamilies, Cetaceans Wholphin is a hybrid product. [2]
molecular biology According to the research of, there are several genera under Dolphinidae (especially Protodolphin and Porphyra )Not Monogenic evolution [3] Therefore, the classification of Dolphinidae is revised as follows:
Delphinidae
Traditional classification based on morphological research (Perrin 1989)
Revised classification based on molecular system analysis (LeDuc et al. 1999)
Stenoninae
Stenoninae
Dolphinae Delphininae
Delphininae
Luridae Lissodelphinae
Lissodelphinae
Globicephalinae
Globaliphalinae
Orcaellinae
Orcininae
Cephalorhynchinae
Uncertain classification position (Incertae sedis)

Existing species

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Note: The species list is classified according to the widely accepted traditional classification [4] See also the list revised according to the new research results Dolphinoidea Entries.
Dolphinidae (17 genera, 37 species)
genus
species
Chinese nickname
Orcinus Orcinus
(Oryx)
tiger whale O. orca
orca Killer whale
Brachydon Orcaella
Yi puffer O. brevirostris
Ayeyarwady finless porpoise, Ayeyarwady porpoise, Ayeyarwady river porpoise, short nosed porpoise
Australian short nosed dolphin O. heinsohni
Australian short flat nosed dolphin , short fin dolphin [5]
Dolphinus Steno
Steno bredanensis S. bredanensis
Striped Teeth Dolphin, Wrinkled Teeth Dolphin
Tuku puffer Sotalia
(Tuku Dolphin, Dwarf Dolphin)
Tuku puffer S. fluviatilis
Tuku dolphin , river beaked dolphin, Amazon white dolphin, river snout dolphin, South American long snout dolphin
Guyana Dolphins S. guianensis
Guyana White Dolphin
Luridae Lissodelphis
Northern whale, warm water finless beaked dolphin
South Whale, Dolphin without dorsal fin and beak
Dwarf Dolphin Cephalorhynchus
Commerson's dolphin C. commersonii
Kang's dolphin, black and white dolphin, panda dolphin C. commersonii
Black dwarf dolphin, white bellied dolphin Black beaked dolphin
Hay's Dwarf Dolphin C. heavisidii
South African dolphins, Benguela dolphins Beaked dolphin
2 subspecies:
1. He's Dwarf Dolphin Named Subspecies C. h. hectori
2、 Maui Dolphin C. h. maui
New Zealand white headed dolphins, New Zealand dolphins White headed beaked dolphin
Porphyra Lagenorhynchus
Bottlenose
Lagenorhynchus albirostris , white nosed dolphin, cuttlefish dolphin
Atlantic White sided dolphin , jumping dolphin, slow dolphin, bouncing dolphin
Pippi's porpoise L. australis
Black cheeked dolphins Black Yi Dolphin , Southern Dolphin, Pi's Dolphin
Wilson's Dolphin Cruciform dolphin , Southern White sided Dolphin
2 subspecies:
1. Dark spotted dolphin subspecies South America L. o. fitzroyi
2. Dark spotted dolphin subspecies South Africa L. o. obscurus
Pilotanax Globicephala
(round headed whale)
G. melas G. melas
2 subspecies:
1. Long limbed pilot whale, southern subspecies G. m. edwardii
2. Long limbed pilot whale Atlantic subspecies G. m. melas
Black round headed whale Globicephala melas Sperm whale
Melon Peponocephala
Melon head whale, multi toothed black whale, baby killer whale, Iletra dolphin
(Leptopterus, Oenocephalus)
Pygmy killer whale F. attenuata
Pseudo killer whale P. crassidens
Killer whale
Leech Dolphin Grampus
Reese Dolphin G. griseus
Grey dolphin , Lee's Dolphin, Reese's Dolphin Grampus griseus , Flower Whale
Albothus Lagenodelphis
(Flemish Dolphin, Sarawak Dolphin)
L. hosei Lagenodelphis hosei , hourglass dolphin, Borneo dolphin
Dolphinus Sousa
Pacific Dolphin S. chinensis
Indian Ocean Dolphin S. plumbea
Australian camel dolphin S. sahulensis
——
Protodolphin Stenella
(Micronose Dolphin)
Blue and white dolphins, blue and white dolphins, striped dolphins
2 subspecies:
1. Tropical spotted porpoise S. a. attenuata
2. Tropical spotted dolphin subspecies mexicana S. a. graffmani
Spotted Dolphin, White Spotted Dolphin, Tropical Spotted Dolphin, White Spotted Pinnose Dolphin, Weak Spotted Dolphin, Tropical Spotted Dolphin
Spotted Pinnose Dolphin, Guji Original Dolphin
Atlantic porpoise
3 subspecies:
1. American subspecies of proboscis S. l. centroamericana
2. Procambarus longirostatus S. l. longirostris
3. Oriental subspecies of proboscis S. l. orientalis
Slender nosed Dolphin, Long nosed Cyclone Dolphin, Long nosed Dolphin, Cyclone Dolphin, Cyclone Dolphin
Bottlenose dolphin Tursiops
Indo Bottlenose Dolphin T. aduncus
3 subspecies:
1. Bottlenose dolphin Pacific subspecies T. t. gillii
2. Bottlenose porpoise Black Sea subspecies T. t. ponticus
3. Bottlenose dolphin named subspecies T. t. truncatus
Bottlenose dolphin , bilinose dolphin Dolphin
Eudolphin Delphinus
Dolphin
2 subspecies:
1. Denominated subspecies of true porpoise D. c. capensis
2. Indian Ocean subspecies D. c. tropicalis
Subspecies 1, also known as Pacific proboscis dolphin
Subspecies 2, also known as Indian Ocean Dolphin
2 subspecies:
1. Denominated subspecies of true dolphins D. d. delphis
2. Black Sea subspecies D. d. ponticus

morphological character

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Dolphins are small to medium-sized whales. The body length is about 1.2-9.5 meters, and the weight is 30-14000 kg. Males are usually larger than females. Its trunk is spindle shaped, smooth and smooth, and its skin is smooth and hairless; The head features prominent features, and the forehead protrudes in front of the beak; Having a hooked dorsal fin. Some dolphins have eye-catching color patterns on their body surface, while others have monotonous colors. [19] It is named "Dolphin" because its round body looks like a pig of several hundred jin. [18 ]
Most dolphins have prominent head features. Due to the existence of lenticular fat, the forehead in front of the beak rises, also known as“ melon ”, such structures help to aggregate Echolocation And the sound of foraging. Some dolphins have frontal lobe, but beak The part is short, and the raised forehead only outlines a square appearance. Most dolphins are smooth and smooth, with a hook like shape Dorsal fin (There are also other forms). Some dolphins have eye-catching color patterns on their body surface, while others have monotonous colors. [6]
Generally, Porpoise It is used for species related to dolphins. They have no well formed beak and snout. Their heads are nearly square and their bodies are short and thick. Most dolphins have a remarkable beak shape, and their bodies are slim and streamlined. The face of the dolphin skull is concave and broad, Maxilla The back end extends from the beak, and the scale bone Zygomatic process Small, enlarged Maxilla and Frontal bone The shape of the beak varies from short to narrow. mandible The fusion length with branches shall not exceed 40%. upper Dentition Posterior deviation, round tooth cross section, various Tooth type From -
Not equal. [6]

Habitat environment

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It mainly inhabits tropical and temperate waters, [21 ] But there are also some species, such as dew backed dolphins, who prefer cold waters. They usually live in shallow water or at least stay near the sea surface. [6]

Life habits

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Dolphins are not like others Cetaceans Deep diving for such a long time. Swim fast with juggling characteristics. [6] Dolphins like to live in groups. They often travel in groups of several to several hundred to chase ships, [23 ] Active and attached. [21 ] Or pack fish for feeding; [22 ]
"Dolphin swimming" is a unique way of swimming for Dolphinidae animals. The whole body jumps out of the water at a small angle and then enters the water at a small angle. This is one of the ways to distinguish dolphins and other cetaceans (Dolphinidae and other cetaceans generally do not swim in this way).
Dolphins swim fast, usually at a maximum speed of 30-40 km per hour. Individual species of dolphins can travel at a speed of more than 55 km/h and can last for a long time. They are champions of long-distance swimming in the sea. [7]
Some dolphins are high Socialization Species, living in large groups (sometimes more than 100000 individuals), show many interesting collective behaviors. There are many ways of cooperation among members of the group. For example, dolphins in the group sometimes attack shark , kill them by hitting them. Members will also cooperate to rescue injured or sick individuals. Dolphins often follow ships and ride the waves. Sometimes they jump into the air like acrobatics, making the scene spectacular. [6]
They mostly feed on small fish, shrimp, squid, crab, etc. [24 ] among Killer whale They also prey on other cetaceans and pinnipeds Like others Toothed whales Similarly, dolphins rely on Echolocation Predation, even with high sound intensity Stun the prey. [6]

Distribution range

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Dolphins are distributed in the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean. [20 ] with tropic coastal Most abundant, some fresh water rivers There are also findings. [8]

Reproductive mode

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It takes about 5 years for female dolphins to become sexually mature and ovulate, but it will take several years before they are truly fertile. Once the male dolphin is mature, he will soak in the female dolphin group all day to find his "right person". Once they fall in love with each other, they will adopt the lightning tactic and leave their hometown immediately after mating. Dolphin mating occurs in summer and autumn, and the pregnancy period is about 11 months. The service life can be as long as 25 years or even 30 years. [25 ]
When a female porpoise gives birth, she first bends her body into an arch shape, and at the same time, she swims forward with great effort and bends her tail sharply. This lasts for nearly an hour, and the tail lobe tip of the fetus begins to show. Two hours later, the baby porpoise is born. The newborn dolphin weighs about 10 kg, accounting for 5% of the mother's weight and 45% of her body length. When the young porpoise's whole body comes out of the mother porpoise's body, the mother porpoise and other female porpoises will help it to breathe the first breath on the water surface, and then follow the mother porpoise closely. When the female dolphin gives birth in water, other female dolphins will gather together to prevent shark And the invasion of killer whales. After childbirth, when the mother porpoise goes to look for food, other dolphins take care of the newborn baby porpoise carefully and form a circle so that the baby porpoise can play safely inside. [10]
Newborn dolphins mainly feed on their mothers' milk, so they should closely follow their mothers from birth until they are about three years old fishing And other survival skills, will gradually away from the mother dolphin group, and live with friends. [9]
The young porpoise draws milk from the nipples on both sides of the female porpoise's reproductive pore. When breast-feeding, the mother porpoise always raises her abdomen and tries to put her nipples close to the mouth of the young porpoise. The tube formed by the tongue of the young porpoise and the mother porpoise's nipples injects milk into the mouth of the young porpoise, and the nipples on both sides alternately breastfeed. One year later, the weight of the young porpoise soared to 64 kg, and the body length was 0.6-0.7 meters. [10]

Population status

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Due to the extremely wide distribution and numerous species of dolphins, scientists have not been able to give accurate statistics of their existing numbers, but they cannot be blindly optimistic.
As early as 2008, International Union for Conservation of Nature According to the survey report, about a quarter of the existing whales and dolphins are threatened to survive to varying degrees, even facing extinction.

Hunting activities

Dolphins are large Carnivore , at the top of the food chain, except for the more ferocious shark In addition, other marine organisms pose no threat to them. It can be said that human beings are the biggest driving force behind dolphins' survival dilemma.
The development of globalized fisheries has brought unprecedented fishing intensity and breadth. It can be said that as long as there are fish, there will be more and more modern fishing tools and means. Although there are relatively environment-friendly fishing technologies, traditional means can still be found everywhere, bringing disaster to dolphins all over the world. It is intended to catch fish, but it still happens from time to time to catch dolphins by mistake; In the net, dolphins can only watch their food turn into human food.
In East Asia (Japan), South Asia, Southeast Asia, and parts of Africa and South America, hunting dolphins has been an invariable custom for thousands of years. According to statistics, within 90 days after being arrested, 53% of dolphins died of depression; Dolphinic Natural life span The average life span is 45 years. Half of the dolphins arrested died within two years after their arrest, and their average life span is only 5 years; stay Artificial environment Dolphins are very vulnerable pneumonia enteritis And other diseases Chlorine water Poisoning, long-term depression and panic will not last for seven years. [11]
On September 1, 2019, the Japanese dolphin hunt was held in Wakayama County Taiji In accordance with the local tradition, the hunting period will last until February 2020. This dolphin hunting activity is regarded as cruel and controversial [12]

environment disruption

Without thinking, human beings dump all kinds of domestic garbage industrial waste water , and all kinds of pesticides Pollution and oil field Wastes have made the originally clear ocean turbid, while oil spills and other large-scale accidents occur from time to time, which further worsen the marine environment. In densely populated riverside and riverside waters, Eutrophication and heavy metal pollution The living environment of aquatic organisms has been threatened, and toxic algae have multiplied in large numbers, which also makes the waters here dangerous. Even at the top of the food chain, dolphins are still not immune. Reproductive and immune systems are seriously damaged, and the mortality rate is greatly increased. 1987 United States New Jersey Hundreds of dolphins on the coast died of abscesses due to immune system dysfunction caused by red tide, which is alarming and chilling.
Hearing is the most sensitive sense of dolphins. Predation, wandering and playing depend on hearing. All kinds of underwater engineering equipment and large and small ships that come and go day and night not only disturb the life of dolphins, but also the "collision" between dolphins and ships sometimes occurs. These human activities“ noise pollution ”It also makes dolphins unbearable, physically and mentally damaged, behavior out of control, pressure multiplication, and abnormal life habits.
In many river basins, building dams, repairing fishing grounds, building flood control projects and extracting water resources have become common behaviors. The living environment of dolphins has been artificially changed, and various projects have been built to prevent dolphins from migrating and other activities. Baiji It was once a treasure that China was proud of, but Gezhouba Dam The completion of, also more or less accelerated its quietly disappear.
global warming Precipitation caused by climate change and sea level rise water temperature and salinity Such ecological environment changes, especially the temperature of some coastal waters has risen by 3-4 degrees Celsius in just half a century. The rapid changes have overwhelmed dolphins.
It can be said that the lack of clear statistics is not because of the wide distribution and large number, but rather because human technology and cognition are very limited. In just a few decades, their once happy swimming water park has become embattled and endangered. [11]

Death explosion

Since January 2019, 1100 dolphin carcasses have been washed up on the Atlantic coast of France. The bodies of these dolphins were incomplete, and their fins were cut off, which was horrible. The number in 2018 has increased compared with 2017, even the highest in 40 years. 90% of dolphin deaths are caused by being entangled in industrial fishing nets, and the reason for the death explosion is still a mystery. [13]

Military Dolphins

In April 2022, according to the latest analysis of satellite images, Russia deployed well-trained military dolphins at its Black Sea naval base - probably to protect its fleet from underwater attacks.
Military Dolphins
The United States Naval Institute (USNI) analyzed the satellite images of the naval base at Sevastopol Port and concluded that at the beginning of Moscow's military action against Ukraine, two dolphin pens were moved to the base, probably in February.
Russia has a history of training dolphins for military purposes, using this aquatic mammal to retrieve objects or deter enemy divers. [15]

Population protection

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Protection level

Dolphins are very intelligent animals and are protected in many countries. [27 ] On December 10, 1988, all genera and species of Dolphinidae were listed in China《 Catalog of Wildlife under Key State Protection 》, where Chinese White Dolphin by National first-class protected animals , other dolphins are National second-class protected animals [14]

Dolphin Watch Alliance

Since starting to study dolphins in Egypt in 2009, University of Zurich Wildlife biologist Angela Ziltener noticed a disturbing trend. "Tourism makes a lot of money from dolphins. People dream of swimming with dolphins, but if they don't follow the guidelines and approach dolphins in an irresponsible way, they will disturb dolphins." This worries Ziltener very much. So she set up an organization called "Dolphin Observation Alliance". [16]

Research value

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  • Smart due to brain development
Dolphins are very intelligent, because they have a developed brain and many gullies. The more gullies there are, the more developed their intelligence will be. The average brain weight of an adult dolphin is 1.6 kg, that of a human is about 1.5 kg, and that of an orangutan is less than 0.25 kg. In terms of absolute weight, dolphins rank first, but in terms of the ratio of brain weight to body weight, human brain accounts for 2.1% of body weight, dolphins for 1.17%, and orangutans for 0.7%.
  • Alternate sleep of brain hemispheres
In addition, after in-depth research, scientists found that dolphins sleep And land mammal There are significant differences. Terrestrial animals including humans sleep Generally, there are two different phases: slow phase and fast phase. When such animals or people fall asleep, they first enter the slow phase, then gradually deepen, after a period of slow phase, they turn to the fast phase, thus completing a cycle. Different animals have different fast sleeping time, for example, people's fast sleeping time is half an hour. The two hemispheres of the dolphin's brain sleep alternately. When the right hemisphere is in an inhibited state, the left hemisphere is in an excited state. After a period of time, the right hemisphere enters an excited state, and the left hemisphere is in an inhibited state. Therefore, dolphins can always maintain sufficient activity and necessary posture even during sleep. In case of strong external stimulation, the two hemispheres will wake up quickly to cope with emergencies. The most special thing is that adult dolphins only have slow phase sleep and no fast phase sleep at all. As for why this is so, scientists have not yet found the reason. [10]
  • Self seeking drugs for skin diseases
University of Zurich Wildlife biologist Angela Ziltener University of Giessen, Germany Analytical chemist and food scientist Gertrud Morlock observed that dolphins would choose specific corals to rub for treatment skin disease Relevant papers will be published on May 19, 2022 Cell Press (Cell Press)'s journal iScience(《 Cross science 》)On. The researchers analyzed Willow coral (Rumphella aggregata), leather coral (Sarcophyton sp.), and Sponge (Irinia sp.) Antibacterial antioxidant , hormone and active metabolite of toxic activity. The discovery of these bioactive compounds led the research team to believe that coral and coral insect mucus can regulate the microbial population of dolphin skin and treat infection. "Repeated rubbing makes active metabolites contact dolphin skin." "These metabolites can help them realize skin Homeostasis And help prevent or assist in the treatment of microbial infections. " [16]

anecdote

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Dolphins That Save People Repeatedly

Dolphins and humans are good friends. They will stand up to help people when they are in danger, and play the role of "lifeguard at sea". [27 ] There are many legends about dolphins, some of which are true. For example, the Greek historian Rotustus recorded such an incredible story in the book "The Legend of Arion": Arion was a famous lyric poet and musician who lived on the island of Lesburg in the 6th century BC. Once, after touring Italy, he took a large amount of money by boat to return to Corinth. On the way, sailors were jealous of money and tried to murder. At that time, Arion asked him to sing another song, and the sailors agreed. Who knows, his beautiful song has attracted countless ocean giants. After he was thrown into the sea, one of them carried him to the shore. This mysterious animal is the famous dolphin. Even in modern times, dolphin rescues people frequently, such as the one published in 1949《 Natural history 》Magazine, published in the United States Florida A lawyer's wife was drowned in the sea and passed out. At the moment of life and death, a dolphin nearby pushed her onto the beach.

A talented performer

Dolphins can not only save people in distress, but also be a talented performer. They can perform many wonderful programs, such as drilling iron rings, playing basketball Interacting with people and making mouth calls [28 ] wait. [10]

Accurate contact signal

Dolphins have their own "signal" vocals, which can let their companions know who they are and where they are, so that they can contact each other. [10]