Dolphins are known to be very social animals and friendly towards people. In addition, they are considered one of the most intelligent animals in the world, which is why they have become a topic of interest for the scientific community. In this sense, their life arouses curiosity and the reproductive cycle is a mystery to many people.
If you are interested in knowing different facts about the life of these animals, in addition to learning how dolphins reproduce and how dolphins are born, you can not miss this article on our site. Keep reading!
Dolphin Characteristics
Before explaining how dolphins are born and reproduce, it is necessary to clarify that they are cetaceans What does this mean? They are mammals adapted to live in water One of the things that makes them mammals is their need to breathe oxygen found in the air, so for this reason it is common to see them near the surface of the water.
On the other hand, dolphins measure from 2 to 9 meters long and are characterized by a slim body with an elongated snout. They also have a spiracle on their heads, a hole they use for breathing.
Dolphins are animals that live in groups of more or fewer members, depending on the species, and in which each one performs a role depending on their age, sex, reproductive season, etc.
Among its main predators are killer whales and various species of sharks. However, one of the most important threats to dolphins comes from human action, as they are victims of the effect of pesticides, plastic pollution and fishing, among others.
How do dolphins reproduce?
Dolphin reproduction is a mystery to most humans, as the mating process occurs underwater. However, the process is similar to that of other mammals: the females have an ovulation period after which they mate with the male dolphins in order to fertilize the ovule. Once fertilized, the offspring begins to form inside the mother's womb and when it is fully developed, the birth phase begins.
First of all, it is important to mention when dolphins start mating. Well, dolphins reach sexual maturity around 5-7 years old, although depending on the species this period can last up to 11-13 years. Likewise, males are sexually mature before females. So, since they take years to reproduce, how long does a dolphin live? It all depends on the species of dolphin, since the striped dolphin, for example, can live up to 60 years, while the bottlenose or bottlenose dolphin usually lives about 40-30 years. Since their life expectancy varies so much from one species to another, it is normal that sexual maturity also presents great variations between them. What is common to all species is that, once they reach sexual maturity, dolphins are very active animals, especially the males.
Now then, How do dolphins mate? Before allowing the male to approach, courtship needs to take place. This courtship consists of carrying out different forms of swimming around the female, which, at first glance, could seem like underwater games. During this courtship, it is common for several males to compete for the same female, even attacking each other to demonstrate her strength as well. When the female agrees to mate with the male, she brings her sexual organ closer to her, since have a penis and testicles, while females have avaginal opening Then, they unite their wombs to carry out the sexual act and carry out fertilization; this process takes a few seconds and can be repeated several times with the same female.
Dolphin Breeding Season
Dolphins generally mate during the warmer seasons (spring-summer), so they migrate to areas hotter for it. However, there is no single mating season for female dolphins, but they can ovulate from two to seven times a year, depending on the species. They are seasonal polyestrous, so their reproductive season usually occurs between spring and autumn.
Dolphins are polygamous and males can mate with multiple females on the same day. In addition, they have sex for pleasure.
What type of reproduction do dolphins have?
As we have already seen, dolphins have a sexual reproduction. This means that dolphins reproduce by copulation and fertilization. For more details, don't miss this other article: "Sexual reproduction in animals".
Dolphin gestation period
Once fertilization has occurred, dolphins begin to develop inside their mother's womb, where they are surrounded by a placenta connected to the umbilical cord. In this sense, the gestation period of the offspring inside the womb is 12 months, although it can vary depending on the species being more or less long.
As happens with most pregnant females, during the pregnancy period the future mother dolphin will tend to eat a greater amount of food, both to guarantee the adequate development of the fetus and to be able to feed it correctly once born. On the other hand, in some species, such as the bottlenose dolphin, it has been observed that pregnant females migrate to warmer areas to give birth there, seeking a more temperate climate and fleeing cold water currents.
Since today very little is known about how dolphins are related and how they reproduce, it is for this reason that it is unknown whether the process is the same in all species.
How are dolphins born?
Now then, How are dolphins born? What happens when they give birth? Unlike humans, for example, baby dolphins do not poke their heads out at birth, but exit through the vaginal opening, showing their tails firstand then the rest of the body. Once the dolphin has fully emerged, the umbilical cord is severed and the calf rises to the surface in search of oxygen. This whole process can take between 40 and 60 minutes, although sometimes it takes up to three hours.
Since the female loses a large amount of blood during childbirth, many predators could take advantage of the moment to hunt her and her young. However, Dolphins are one of the few animals that Assist births Thus, when they are born dolphins, group members stand around the female to protect her. During this process, one or several females usually approach to check that everything is going well and assist the dolphin that is giving birth if she needs it.
How many dolphins does a dolphin have?
Females give birth to a single calf every 2-3 years depending on the species, it being unusual for them to have two calves at the same time time.
How long and weigh a dolphin at birth?
Depending on the species, at birth a baby dolphin can measure between 1 meter and 1.5 meters long, and weigh around 30-40 kg.
Once born, the life of dolphins arouses curiosity in human beings. Now that you know how dolphins reproduce and how they are born, discover much more about their life cycle in the following sections.
Birth of a dolphin: video
Unfortunately, it is not possible to show how dolphins are born in the wild, however, in the following video you can see the birth of a baby dolphin in one of the Dolphin Quest enclosures.
How long does the baby dolphin stay with its mother?
When dolphins are born, they feed on their mother's milk, since their mothers have mammary glands. In general, the lactation period of dolphins usually lasts between 12 and 24 months, since it depends largely on the species to which they belong. Also, in the wild, researchers are still analyzing the details related to the birth and lactation period of dolphin calves, so it is difficult to establish an average.
Generally, the young tend to stay with their mother for the duration of the lactation period and a few years more, the average being about 3-6 years in totalDuring this time, the hatchlings learn as much as they can about social relationships, methods of hunting and obtaining food, etc. Likewise, it is common for mothers to leave their calves alone at times, which usually stay with other dolphins in the group. Little by little, the pups are more independent.
Again, we want to emphasize how little we know about these animals in the wild, since most of the studies have been carried out on specimens in captivity, where they do not show their true social relationships or attendance at birth that they do carry out in the wild. Among the different types of dolphins that exist, the bottlenose dolphin is one of the most studied in the wild, however, there is still much to discover and, therefore, establish fixed and equal parameters for all species in terms of how dolphins reproduce or how they are born is complicated.
What do dolphins eat?
Dolphin feeding depends on age. The newborn dolphins feed on the mother's milk. As we said in the previous section, during the first year, the young only eat this.
Now then, what do adult dolphins eat? Although this was a mystery for a long time, today we know that they eat fish of up to 5 kilograms, squid, octopus, molluscs and other marine animals of similar sizes. They do not chew their prey, they swallow it when they have managed to catch it with their powerful jaws. To facilitate this process, they use the muscles at the back of the tongue and throat, which help them expel water or direct the fish into their stomach.
Among the curiosities about dolphins, one of them has to do with the mechanism they use to catch their prey, since they use echolocation It is an ability that works like a radar from the sounds they emit; when these sounds bounce off the fish and back towards the dolphins, they are able to “see” their location, even when prey is far away. At the moment of making the attack, the dolphins organize themselves into groups of several individuals forming a circle or semicircle that surrounds the school of fish to then carry out attacks in turns, in such a way that each one of them has a turn to eat.
Dolphin trivia
Dolphins are fascinating animals and their way of life can be very curious. Here are some of the surprising facts about them.
How do dolphins move?
Do you know where dolphins live? They prefer shallow waters close to the coast, especially in the seas and oceans with tropical and temperate climates, since they do not like cold waters.
Annually, they make great migrations to get away from the cold seasons, so the dolphins move through a technique called hydroplaning, which allow them to reach speeds of up to 54 km/h.
How do dolphins sleep?
It is difficult to imagine how marine animals sleep, as they are at the mercy of currents. However, dolphins do. To do this, they turn off half of their brain and rest, while the other hemisphere stays alert for any threat.
This way of sleeping is possible because the cerebral hemispheres of dolphins are independent.
Other curiosities about dolphins
These marine mammals are full of surprises! Here are some other fun facts about them:
- They lack the sense of smell.
- They need to come to the surface every 10 minutes to breathe fresh air.
- They have a highly developed sense of hearing, they can listen at great distances and even differentiate the sound of certain materials.
- They are collaborators with each other, live in groups and support each other when one of the members has been hurt.
- They communicate through echolocation, dance and jumping.
And to discover more curious things about dolphins, don't miss this other article: "Dolphin curiosities".
