dolphins
Where’s that accent from? Dolphins from different seas talk in different whistles
Dolphins talk to each other by whistling, but whistle sounds vary between seas. What causes those differences in dolphin accents? Anastasia YandulskayaI am a PhD candidate at Northeastern University in Boston. I study regeneration of the nervous system in water salamanders called axolotls. In my free time, I like to read science fiction, bake, go […]
Sneeze, Cough, Chuff: Respiratory Irritation in Dolphins
We all know what it’s like to get sick and have that irritating cough that just doesn’t seem to go away. Well, what about when you’re a marine mammal that doesn’t breathe through a mouth? Dolphins breathe air through their blowhole which is located on the top of their head. What is interesting though is […]
Life of the party: Dolphin personalities and social structures
Are you more of a life of the party type person or a wallflower reserved type? Did you ever think that non-human animals, like dolphins, might have similar personality differences? This scientist takes a look at wild bottlenose dolphin populations and why their personality characteristics are important. Elena GadoutsisI didn’t take the typical marine biologist […]
Facing the music: calls from one of the worlds most endangered dolphins
The Study: Melo-Santos, G., Figueiredo Rodrigues, A.L., Tardin, R.H., de Sá Maciel, I., Marmontel, M., Da Silva, M.L., May-Collado, L.J. 2019. The newly described Araguaian river dolphins, Inia araguaiaensis (Cetartiodactyla, Iniidae), produce a diverse repertoire of acoustic signals. PeerJ: e6670. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.6670 River Dolphins Inia araguaiaensis was first discovered in 2014 and is one of […]
Sensitive skin? Dolphins feel touch best on their faces
Hands are among the most touch-sensitive body parts for humans, but what about dolphins? Scientists studied how well dolphins feel touch from head to tail – and found the most touch-sensitive parts. Anastasia YandulskayaI am a PhD candidate at Northeastern University in Boston. I study regeneration of the nervous system in water salamanders called axolotls. […]
Protections with a bite: Are toothed whales sheltered by South African Marine Protected Areas?
Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are often put into place to protect biodiversity and essential fish stocks, but toothed whales are rarely considered when deciding where to put an MPA. As South Africa looks to expand its protected areas, Jean Purdon and her colleagues set out to learn where the toothed whales are living off the […]
Are dolphins losing their minds in blooming ocean waters?
Polluted water is a great source of food for harmful algal blooms, which release even more toxins into the water. And now scientists say that algal blooms may give dolphins Alzheimer’s disease-like brain damage. Anastasia YandulskayaI am a PhD candidate at Northeastern University in Boston. I study regeneration of the nervous system in water salamanders […]
Threats to Cetaceans: There’s More than Meets the Eye
Researchers spent seven years specifically studying deceased, stranded cetaceans along the coastline of the Canary Islands in Spain to figure out what most likely caused their deaths. They found that while human activity accounted for a large portion, something else was responsible for a much larger percentage of cetacean death. Rishya NarayananRishya is a multimedia […]
Contaminant fingerprints in fat tell all
This tell-all exposé isn’t from the Maury Show…read on to learn about the use of a nifty chemistry technique that paints a picture of all the contaminants found in the fat of Brazilian dolphins, and what this means for you Anna RobuckI am a third year PhD student at the University of Rhode Island Graduate […]
Rachel Carson had the right idea: DDT persists in unexpected ways in dolphins
Rachel Carson was right to focus her novel on the effects of DDT; DDT persists to this day in dolphins off the California coast in forms that are often not monitored by monitoring programs. Anna RobuckI am a third year PhD student at the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography in the Lohmann […]
Sound waves: dolphins in a noisy ocean
As human influence in Earth’s oceans increases, so does the background noise. How might dolphins cope with changes in environmental noise levels, particularly in areas where it has seen a substantial, recent increase? Do chattier dolphins have to invest more energy into their aural physiological systems? Brittney G. BorowiecBrittney is a PhD candidate at McMaster […]
Powered by WordPress. Designed by 