Harkomal, a fifth-grader currently participating in our Online Classroom Connection program, submitted the following ten questions. I was able to pull in DCP researcher Justin Gregg, Ph.D to help answer some too!

1. Why do dolphins have 3 stomachs?
Some dolphin species have two stomachs, but most do indeed have three. The first of the three stomach acts as a storage unit – it holds the food until the other stomachs are ready for digestion to occur. Using this method, a dolphin can quickly gobble up as much food as it wants, and then, when it has a free second, allow the food to enter the second stomach. The second stomach is where all the action happens, and functions a lot like the human stomach, with enzymes and acids breaking down the food. The third stomach acts as a kind of waiting area for the digested food before it is dumped into the small intestine.

2. How long does it take to become a marine biologist?
This can really depend on what kind of work you want to do as a marine biologist. You can do a lot of work with a Bachelor’s degree (4-years) and even more work with a Master’s. If you want to teach at a college or be a senior scientist managing research and other scientists you may also need a Ph.D.

3. What do you do to become one?
Every successful marine biologist has to start with a strong interest for the marine (or freshwater) environment. You have to be interested in the life there: the plants, the animals, everything. I (Kel) was always drawn to my science classes and by the time I was in college I decided to get a degree in Environmental Studies. I thought this would give me a broad background in most things environment-related, not just the oceans, which it did. I took classes like geology, botany and zoology, but also took social classes to learn more about how people all over the world interact with their environment. While in college, I started interning with DCP and really like the field work. So, I decided to get my Master’s (which took me almost 3 years). I now get to manage DCP’s research in Bimini, The Bahamas and contribute to our various education programs. For me, it’s the perfect balance of traditional science and education.

4. What do prehistoric dolphins look like?
The earliest ancestors of dolphins were land mammals that probably looked a lot like large rodents. As these species slowly evolved into ocean dwelling animals, they probably started to look like seals and sea lions – with sleek bodies, but still retaining limbs. Over time, as new species spent more and more time in the water – eventually living their permanently – their limbs evolved into the flukes and flippers that we now recognize in modern dolphin species. Also, the nose of the ancestors of dolphins moved to the top of their heads, with the blowhole eventually evolving over it, and the nostrils becoming the organs in the dolphin’s head that now produce their vocalizations.

5. How do dolphins use echolocation?
DCP has produced a podcast episode with all sorts of lovely detail on how dolphins use echolocation. You can check it out at this link: http://www.dolphincommunicationproject.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1111&Itemid=263

6. How do dolphins fend off predators?
Their primary means of fending them of is to avoid them. Dolphins tend to leave the area when large sharks (their natural predator) show up. But when they are attacked, dolphins sometimes attack sharks by ramming them with their beaks. Sometimes dolphin groups will gang up on sharks in order to chase them off. Dolphins have “safety in numbers” on their side; they usually stay in groups so many dolphins can be on the lookout for predators.

7. What is the rarest species of dolphin in the world?
There are two possible answers for this one. First, the Baiji, otherwise known as the Yangtzee river dolphin, was declared ‘functionally extinct’ a few years ago. Scientists went on an expedition to look for any sign of a living Baiji, but didn’t find a single one. This led them to the conclusion that even if there are any left, their population is so small that they are destined to go extinct. It’s still possible there is one or two Baiji alive, but scientists are not really sure. If they truly are extinct, then the next rarest dolphin is Maui’s dolphin – which lives in the waters around New Zealand. There are probably less than 100 of these little guys left.

8. Do dolphins fight for a mate?
Many species of dolphins do indeed fight for access to females for mating. Dolphin mating happens very quickly, and males and females do not stay together for life – or even very long after mating happens. So, males spend a lot of time competing in order to be the one to get that brief chance to mate with the females. Sometimes males form groups in order to fight off other male dolphin groups for access to females. A lot of male dolphins are covered in rake marks (tooth scars) from fights with other males. Usually these fights are very brief, and do not result in serious injury. 

9. What is your favourite type of fish?
Ah, a fish question to dolphin researchers! My (Kel) favorite fish, technically speaking, is probably the spotted eagle ray. Spotted eagle rays are relatively closely related to sharks and are common in the waters around Bimini. Sometimes I like to sit and watch the harbor – if I’m lucky I see a spotted eagle ray leaping completely out of the water! As far as other fish go, I definitely have a sweet spot for puffers. Once, I was able to observe dozens of them huddled in the roots of Bimini’s mangroves. They were amazing!

10. When did you start working with dolphins?
I (Kel) began officially working with dolphins in 2003 as part of a summer internship with DCP – and I’ve been hooked ever since. But, even as a young student I was always interested in marine mammals. I used to ride my bike to the library and photocopy the whale and dolphin books!

Thanks for your great questions and for sharing so much dolphin information with your class. If any of our answers have led you to new questions, write them down and you can ask them when we chat via Skype!

Cheers,
Kel

Wednesday was another lovely day in Bimini. At 1330 I was in the midst of a very engaging talk with Bimini Undersea’s guests. What a fantastic group; thanks for all of your questions. Afterwards it was out to search for the dolphins. We needed no patience today: only a few minutes out we came upon a group of at least 12 bottlenose dolphins. To our great pleasure the group (including one calf!) was crater feeding which meant a nice, long underwater encounter.  It was great!

As the afternoon continued, we continued to look for spotted dolphins. At 1715  I saw a dolphin…in the air! It was quite far, but as we got closer we saw two, then four, then six dolphins, including un-named #43 and her calf. We got a brief but nice look at this group after watching them from the boat for quite some time. On the ride home we were lucky enough to see yet another group of dolphins. This time it was a scattered group of spotted dolphins, including two young calves. The calves were leaping all about, riding the bow and generally showing off their pink bellies. We said hello to one calf under water and then made way our way back to shore.

More to come tomorrow!

Until then,
Kel

My Tuesday afternoon began with a DCP Q&A session with guests at Sea Crest. Although I (sadly) do not speak French, it was a great conversation. Thank you to those guests who helped with the translation!

Soon, I was picked up by Bimini Undersea and before we knew it, we were at ‘3 Sisters.’ The time passed so quickly with such great dolphin conversation! After a lovely snorkel stop, we were headed in search of dolphins. Hopes were dwindling as the afternoon progressed, but as I’ve said, if the dolphins have taught me anything, they have taught me patience. We did not get skunked after all: we came upon two adults, including un-named #24. They were mildly interested in the boat (and seemingly in each other), but soon the numbers grew and we were with eight dolphins: Romeo (#10), Tina (#14), Lumpy (#17) and un-named #24 and #75. Although we were all wishing for a swim, we were glad to have the chance to watch these busy dolphins surf – if only we could do that!

More dolphin trips to come this week!

Until then,
Kel

Monday’s dolphin trip departed Sea Crest Hotel & Marina early, giving guests the opportunity to have an extended snorkel stop at “The Bimini Road” (aka “Atlantis”) and enjoy lunch on the boat. Soon, we were headed in search of dolphins and we quickly came upon several bottlenose dolphins. They were scattered and on the move so we continued on our way in search of others. Luckily we were not disappointed…

First we came upon seven Atlantic spotted dolphins: four adults, including un-named #40 and 43, and 3 calves. The seas were so calm that we had incredible views of this group and we were able to swim with them too! Soon after we lost sight of them, we came upon a group of eight bottlenose dolphins. It looked like at least one of the individuals was also in yesterday’s group, but I won’t know for sure until the photos are processed for IDs. They were again quite active at the surface although today some of that activity may have been related to the agitation caused by the two remoras on the belly of the dolphin in this picture. Imagine the drag those creatures are causing – ouch!

We ended the day with an observation of and short swim with Niecey (#48) and Lone Star (#56) each with her own calf. At one point, Lone Star was simply hanging at the surface, vertical, with her calf. We all got a good look!

Until next time,
Kel

On Sunday, we departed Sea Crest Hotel & Marina at about 1530 with an enthusiastic group of French/Swiss guests. The crew, in particular, was thrilled with the calm seas after last week’s wind. The guests relaxed and chatted as we all kept our eyes open for dolphins. About halfway into the trip there they were – eight bottlenose dolphins. I quickly grabbed our digital SLR, hoping to capture at least a few dorsal fin photographs. Often, when we encounter bottlenose dolphins one of two things happens: they are crater feeding (aka bottom grubbing) and we get a very long time with them or they surface and we never see them again. They did not appear to be crater feeding, so we prepared ourselves for the alternative. They went down….and then came up again. They went down….and then came up again. They…well, you get the picture. I was torn between continuing to collect dorsal fin photographs, which are a priority for our photo-ID catalog, and going in the water with the guests to see what these dolphins were up to.

Well, I opted for the surface photographs and was not disappointed; there will be plenty of photos to sort. But, I do want everything and was hanging on every word the guests and Al had to say about what they saw. This was a very rare case of mating (or socio-sexual behavior/play?) among bottlenose dolphins here. We see lots of this behavior from bottlenose dolphins, but usually within mixed-species groups. Things between the bottlenose were a bit rowdy, so the humans hung back and just watched. What a day!

The forecast is good all week, so stay tuned for daily reports!

Until then,
Kel

Monday’s dolphin trip left Sea Crest Hotel & Marina without me (as planned – don’t worry, they didn’t just leave me behind!). But, they had a great day, first with some older Atlantic spotted dolphins, then with some youngsters. Tuesday’s and Thursday’s dolphin trips were abbreviated because of the high east winds. The guests, who were wonderful and a pleasure to meet (thank you!), were able to spend time snorkeling at ‘3 Sisters’ and ‘The Bimini Road.’

Hopefully Mother Nature has gotten all the wind out of her system.

Until next time,
Kel

As we prepared for Sunday’s dolphin trip, we couldn’t help but wonder how much we were going to be able to search for dolphins. The weather forecast was not in our favor, yet, the conditions seemed to be improving. So, we headed out and were pleasantly surprised with the calm conditions! The sky was only partly cloudy and as the seas continued to calm, the guests saw splashing in the distance. We headed over and were greeting by two young Atlantic spotted dolphins – it was hard to tell if they had developed their first spots, but we did not see any adults around them. They were chasing fish and one went on a leaping frenzy! It was amazing! Before we could attempt to observe the two under water, they were gone. On our way home, we also got a quick glimpse of Tilly (#87). She did not stay by the boat very long and we did not see anyone else with her. Of course, just because we did not see any other dolphins does not mean they were not there; but it is very unusual to get such a quick glimpse of Tilly who is normally quite interactive with us.

All in all, a great day! Stay tuned from updates throughout the week.

Until next time,
Kel

Kathleen will discuss her research, DCP and the film, DOLPHINS, at The Maritime Aquarium (Norwalk, CT) on 9 June 2011. The lecture begins at 7:30 p.m. with the film, DOLPHINS, immediately following. Tickets are available now: $15 (adults/$12.50 (children). Reserve your tickets today by calling 203.852.0700 or by visiting http://www.maritimeaquarium.org/special_events.asp.

What to learn more about this great film? Click here.

Several spaces have just become available for a dolphin swim package with Sea Crest Hotel & Marina in Bimini, The Bahamas. This last minute trip begins on 10 July 2011 and includes 5 nights’ accommodation, 5 boat trips in search of wild dolphins (weather dependent), all meals, boat snacks, drinking water and snorkel gear (if needed). DCP researchers will be present on all boat trips – so you’ll be able to sneak a bit of education into your vacation! And who knows, maybe you'll see Tina (pictured here!).

Cost: $1695 double occupancy (single supplement available)
Arrival: 10 July 2011
Departure 15 July 2011
Airport code: BIM
Questions: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

DCP would like to extend a big hello to Harkomal, a fifth grader participating in DCP’s Online Classroom Connection program.  Hello Harkomal!  He’ll be spending time learning about dolphins over the next month and sharing what he learns with his classmates.  Today, I’ll be directing him to particular areas of this website.  All of you out there are welcome to play along too!

So, Harkomal, my name is Kelly Melillo Sweeting.  Let’s start with a sort of internet scavenger hunt to help you get to know me, DCP, our dolphins and our website.  Read below – and just check in with your teacher if you have questions:

What does DCP stand for?  Can you find the ‘What is DCP’ link?  We study 3 different species (types) of dolphins in 3 different countries – do you know what and where they are?  When we study wild dolphins away from the United States, do we chase or touch them?  Should you? Using this website (or another resource) can you find the Latin or scientific names for the dolphin species we study? There is an episode of The DolphinPod called ‘The Dolphin Species Song.’ What do you think of that?

Can you find my short biography?  Where was I born?  Do you know where I got my Master’s degree? Do you know the title of my thesis?

I lead DCP’s Bimini field site.  Can you find the link to DCP’s Research Sites?  What country is Bimini in?  Can you find it on a map?

Later, check out “Dolphin Speak” a behavior game under ‘About Dolphins.’ There, you’ll meet DCP’s Director, Dr. Kathleen Dudzinski. And hopefully you’ll learn some new things about dolphin behavior too!

Talk to you soon!
-Kel