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Wednesday, 5 June 2013

Dolphin Language

     Even though I am having a flu, I feel so excited to share this piece of information with all of you, that I must do it now! So prepare yourselves for this interesting dolphin information!

There are variations in the sounds that dolphins make in air and underwater. Sound waves travel by passing vibrations from molecule to molecule. They travel slowest in air, 4.5 times faster in water, and the fastest in solids. In air, the molecules are spaced far apart and thus it is harder for the molecules to collide together passing on vibrations. Whereas, in liquid and solids, where molecules are spaced closer together, facilitating collisions and thus allowing sound waves to travel faster.

Factors affecting Speed of Sound in Air:

  • Wind Conditions
  • Temperature: Sound travel faster in higher temperatures.
  • Humidity: Water vapour in the air increases speed of sound. 
     In air, dolphins produce sounds by letting out air through their blowholes. They can change the sounds by controlling the size and shape of the blowhole opening. They do this to attract people to their lagoons.

This is a video of my wife making a dophin sound with a balloon. 
Try it! It's fun!

   Underwater, dolphins produce 3 types of sounds.

1.     Whistles: Used for self-identification.
To hear the sound:
Different species of dolphins have different frequency range of whistles. This helps them to identify themselves as a school of dolphins. For example, bottlenose dolphins have a range of 2 to 24 KHz.

2.     Clicks/Echolocation: Used for navigation
To hear the sound:

3. Burst Pulses: Used to express emotions

Here is an interesting video on dolphins playing with air rings.

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