Communication and Social Behavior in the Atlantic Bottlenose Dolph Essa

Introduction Social behavior in mammals other than humans has always been something that has fascinated not only scientists, but the general population as well. Large mammals known to exhibit similar behaviors to humans have always been popular favorites at zoos and aquariums. One particular favorite is an animal known for its social behavior and intelligence: Tursiops truncates, the bottlenose dolphin (Prevost, 1995). This cetacean has global distribution that spans all tropical and temperate marine waters with bays, sounds, estuaries, and open shorelines being the habitats most frequently inhabited, and sea grass beds being the preferred nursery locations (Prevost, 1995). These mammals are some of the most admired sea creatures and have shown great capacity for intelligence. They are often trained and used in shows at aquariums. Most frequently studied are their communication types and their complex social behavior, with things like verbal and nonverbal communication, communities and social hi erarchies, and common social behaviors receiving a particular emphasis. Physical Attributes and Relevant Zoological Information Tursiops truncates, with its Atlantic sub-species named T .t. truncates, has some very distinct physical features. The size is a range of six to thirteen feet or two to four meters (Prevost, 1995) (Reynolds & Wells, 2003). The average dolphin is about 9 feet long and usually weighs about 600 pounds, although males are typically 25% larger than females (CITATION). The rostrum extends for several inches, but is relatively short compared to the rest of the torpedo shaped body. (Felhammer, et al. 2003). The rostrum is also the basic for the T. t. truncates common name of â€Å"bottlenose† (Felhammer, et al. 2003). ... ...d Social Organization of the Bottlenose Dolphin: A Review. Marine Mammmal Science,( 2 ed, pp. 34–63). Prevost, J. F. (1995). Bottlenose dolphins. (pp. 18-19). Minneapolis, MN: Abdo Consulting Group, Inc. Janik, V. M. (2009). Vocal communication in birds and mammals. (1 ed., Vol. 40, pp. 123-148). San Diego, CA: Elsevier Inc. Retrieved from http://books.google.com/books?id=5v63gz04YVgC&printsec=frontcover Feldhammer, G. A., Thomspon, B. C., & Chapman, J. A. (2003). Wild mammals of north america: biology, management, and conservation. (2 ed., pp. 397-425). Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins University Press. Retrieved from http://books.google.com/books?id=-xQalfqP7BcC&printsec=frontcover Reynolds, J. E., & Wells, R. S. (2003). Dolphins, whales, and manatees of florida: A guide to sharing their world. (1 ed., pp. 28-45). Gainesville, FL: University Press of Florida.