Dolphin Bubbles

• Are Dolphins Man’s Best Friend?

  Posted Mar 30, 2009 | 10 Bubbles

  This post was written by Cassidy Piersall

  We all know that dogs are man’s best friend; but who says you can’t have two best friends? I say dolphins should have a best friend place in our lives, too. Even though dolphins are not common pets, they still play an important role in the human world.

  Did you know dolphins are in the military? Neither did I! Actually, they’ve been in our United Stated Navy since 1960. That’s nearly half a century! They have been trained to deliver equipment to underwater personnel & to find and return lost objects. Not only that, but they guard boats and submarines. But hopefully they just guard from intruding people; I’m pretty sure that a dolphin can’t win against an intruding missile or other boat…

  Our Navy first began using dolphins when they decided to study the underwater sonar capabilities of dolphins so they could learn how to make better ways of detecting things underwater. They found out that they could learn how to increase the speed of their boats and submarines by researching dolphins on their ability to swim fast and dive deep.

  And you wouldn’t believe this…they even do underwater surveillance! They just have to hold the camera in their mouth. Hopefully it doesn’t taste bad! Our dolphin friends have been used in the Cold War, Vietnam War, Persian Gulf War, and possibly others.

  Dogs are also in the military and are extremely good at saving peoples lives. So… I guess we have two best friends after all: dogs, our land best friends, and dolphins, our marine best friends!

  * image source: http://urlbrief.com/a60fb7

  10 Comments;

• Facts About Dolphins Word Search

  Posted Mar 25, 2009 | 9 Bubbles

  This post was written by Cassidy Piersall

  Not only do we love dolphins, but we like to make learning about dolphins fun! Here’s a great printable dolphin word search you can use at home, in your classroom, or in the car on the way to SeaWorld!

  
  And in case you haven’t gotten enough, here are more cool dolphin facts!

  9 Comments;

• As seen on World News with Charles Gibson. SeaWorld Dolphin Bubbles.

  Posted Mar 11, 2009 | 115 Bubbles

  115 Comments;

• Four Dolphins, Four Fun Facts & Oodles of Reasons to Love These Animals!

  Posted Mar 2, 2009 | 27 Bubbles

  This post written by Cassidy Piersall.

  BOTTLENOSE DOLPHIN
  Anytime dolphins are spoken of, these babies are sure to come to mind. Quickies:
  
  • They prey on mainly small fish and squid.
  • They can travel at speeds of 18 miles an hour.
  • They can make up to 1,000 clicking sounds per second! That’s insane!
  • That blowhole of theirs is their nose.
  

  COMMERSON’S DOLPHIN
  This is probably not a picture that comes to your mind when you think ‘dolphin’. Quickies:
  
  • These poor guys are hunted for crab bait.
  • They have harlequin-shaped markings on their body.
  • They’re only found on the southern tip of South America and an island off Africa.
  • Live in groups of 1-3, but large schools are occasionally formed.
  

  SPINNER DOLPHIN
  Not the most famous dolphin out there, but a beautiful one. Quickies:
  
  • They reside in tropical pelagic oceans all over the world.
  • They are 1.7-2m long.
  • It is unknown of their conservation status.
  • They can be seen in schools from 5 to 200. But schools of 1,000 have been reported.
  

   
  DUSKY DOLPHIN
  And save the best for last, the Dusky Dolphin. I’m not sure why I love this over the others, but I do. Quickies:
  
  • They inhabit the coastal regions below the Tropic of Capricorn all the way to the sub-Arctic.
  • They have an all white belly.
  • Schools of them can range from 20 to 300.
  • They are a very acrobatic species.
  

   

  (Photos are from Flickr and are CC licensed for commercial use with attribution)
  http://www.flickr.com/photos/28228039@N02/2634114641/
  http://flickr.com/photos/jurvetson/3186464038/
  http://flickr.com/photos/r_mushet/2915415087/
  http://flickr.com/photos/nikonvscanon/2427517405/

  27 Comments;

• Splish, Splash – Wait, I need to touch a fish?!

  Posted Feb 24, 2009 | 30 Bubbles

  This post written by Lauren H

  Recently, my five year old son Alex and I got the opportunity to go to Sea World, Orlando. This was his very first time, and I think my parents may have taken me when I was about his age. I couldn’t wait to experience the fun through my son’s eyes.

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  
  
  

  Alexzander loves science.. how things grow, why things work, and sea creatures are extremely interesting to him. He had a billion and one questions for me at every turn, and thankfully the employees at Sea World were able to help me explain what and why on more than one occasion. The one thing that we wanted to do- aside from seeing Shamu- was to feed the dolphins. Living in Florida, occasionally we are blessed with the experience of seeing wild dolphins as we cross the bridges in the Tampa Bay area, and once we even went on a ‘dolphin encounter’ type boat, but never, ever did we have the experience that we had at Sea World.

  We lined up with our receipt for our tray of fish, and right away Alex started asking questions.. “Why do they have a hole on the top of their heads?” “Why does the lady on the microphone call their heads ‘melons’?” “Can I touch it?” “Will it bite me?” “Does a dolphin have teeth?” After I answered him as best as I could, it was our turn to head to the feeding area. The staff explained all the rules to us, and to watch out for the pesky seagulls. The Sea World associates filled our order of fish, and Alex looked at me wide eyed and said, “Wait, I need to touch a fish?!”

  Feeding the dolphins was undeniably the coolest thing I have ever done. These majestic creatures came right up to the edges of the habitat they were in, and looked at us with these giant smiles and round black eyes. My son and I touched under their mouths as they came right up and ate fish from our hands. Alex got to see that dolphins did indeed have teeth, and giggled about how they felt rubbery. One of them even came out of the water and laid across the ledge in front of us! It was amazing, watching the warm Florida sun glisten off their bodies! After the feeding time ended, the dolphins swam back to the deeper parts of the habitat, and several even bound into the air with excitement. It truly was amazing!

  Our memories feeding the dolphins in Sea World, Orlando will be something that we’ll remember for a long time. In fact, I know I’ll never forget it.

  30 Comments;

did you know you could swim with dolphins?