APPEARANCE: Dolphins can be several colors. Some are gray, white, black and even pink. All dolphins have streamlined bodies that help them move quickly through the water. Most have fins on their backs called dorsal fins. They have one flipper on each side of their body, flippers are sort of like arms. They help the dolphin steer through the water. The dolphin's tail is called a fluke. Flukes are flat and they are moved up & down helping the dolphin to swim. Dolphins have small ears near their eyes - they are small holes. A blowhole is an opening on top of the dolphin's head. The dolphin breaths through the blowhole and must swim to the water's surface to breathe air. They open their blowholes to take in air and close them when they dive underwater. They usually only surface for a very short time.

FOOD: Most dolphins eat fish, but some eat squid, crabs and shrimp. Dolphins have several ways of catching their food. One way is fish wacking. This is when the dolphin uses its tail to hit fish. Sometimes this kills fish, sometimes it injures them. Some dolphins have learned to follow fishing boats, in order to get a free meal. Fisherman often throw unwanted fish overboard, making an easy meal for dolphins!

ECHOLOCATION: (Using sounds to locate things). Dolphins use sound for many things. They click, whistle and squeak. They use these sounds to talk to each other. They use different sounds to find prey. During echolocation the dolphin sends out thousands of "clicks". These clicks bounce off objects that are in front of the dolphin. Echoes tell them the objects' size, shape, speed, direction and even what the object is made up of. Scientists believe that echolocation may mix up the dolphin's prey. When groups of dolphins hunt together, they send out thousands of clicks as they surround a school of fish. The fish become confused by the noise and so they are easily caught. BTW, dolphins do have good vision, echolocation is usually used for other purposes than vision. (More on that later).

HABITAT: Salt water dolphins live in all the oceans of the world. Freshwater dolphins live in the rivers of Asia and South America. Many dolphins live in groups called pods. Pods seem to provide safety to them in many ways. More on this later!

YOUNG: Young dolphins are called calves. Calves can see, hear and swim on their own at birth. But they depend on their mothers for protection & milk.