1. lifelines
  2. Dolphin "stampede"

Dolphin "stampede"

By dr. dolittle on March 7, 2012.

If you have not yet had a chance to see this viral video from CBS News of dolphins swimming en masse, here it is! I have seen large pods of dolphins gather around the fishing vessel when deep sea fishing, presumably hoping for a reject from one of the fisherman. I have also seen them following cruise ships and other ocean vessels, but I have never witnessed that large of a group. When pods of dolphins come together, it is called a herd or aggregation, which sounds less exciting than what the media have been calling it: a "stampede". This particular aggregation consisted of ~2000 dolphins swimming alongside a whale watching boat off the coast of California.

Some researchers suggest that the purpose of these aggregations is for cooperative feeding. When prey numbers were highest, the numbers of dolphins aggregating was also highest. But they may also aggregate for other reasons according to experts at Sea World.

In my search for why dolphins would gather in aggregations, I came across this amusing music video created by Dolphin Communication Project that presents the various species of dolphins: (I apologize in advance if the tune gets stuck in your head)

If you are planning on attending Experimental Biology 2012, don't forget to enter the contest to win a free Dr. Dolittle "What's New in Comparative Physiology" t-shirt and try your chance at also winning free coffee at the meeting! To learn more, click here.

Sources:
CBS News (video)
Dolphin Communication Project
Sea World
Aggregation behaviour:
http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2003ASAJ..114.2300B

Tags
Life Science

More like this

Discovered: New Family of Limbless Amphibians
Image: Proceedings of the Royal Society B Dr. Biju and colleagues at the University of Delhi have discovered a new family of limbless caecilian amphibians (Gymnophiona) in northern India. Although these soil-dwelling animals look an awful lot like earthworms, genetic testing and comparative…
Using horses to study asthma
Image source: Burlington Equine Veterinary Services, LLC. Talk about comparative physiology! Some older horses develop a condition called equine heaves, which is similar to asthma in humans. Horses that live in more humid environments that promote mold growth are more prone to the disorder than…
Discovered: New species of frog found in NY!
Image Source: UA News, Brian Curry, Rutgers. It is easy to get lost in a crowd, especially in an area as densely packed as New York. Scientists from UCLA, Rutgers University, UC Davis and The University of Alabama have discovered a new species of frog in just that region! The frogs were found in…
A dentist's dream come true: Some carnivores lack a sweet tooth
New research conducted by Dr. Gary Beauchamp from the Monell Chemical Sciences Center in Philadelphia has shown that seven of twelve species of carnivorous mammals tested lack taste receptors for sweets. According to the article, Dr. Beachamp and his colleagues identified mutations in the mammalian…

I remember a largish pod of dolphins, maybe 3 dozen or so, playing in front of the cutwater of my (U.S. Navy) ship at 18 knots on the run from Panama to Pearl Harbor. Amazing sight. I can only imagine how it would be seeing a couple thousand from a small boat.

Love the dolphin song. And you are right...it's playing in my head. I hope to see many in Hawaii this spring!