The aim of this successful research was to capture the behavior of dolphins as they chase, capture and eat prey. The scientists also noticed the comical images of the dolphins’ faces from the angle at which some cameras were positioned.
United States Army investigators they strapped cameras to 6 of their trained dolphins and then released them into the sea to hunt freely. The records provided new details of how they feed and communicate, as well as entertaining postcards of these aquatic mammals.
This exercise was part of an investigation conducted in the San Diego Bay and gathered some of the first footage of how dolphins behave in their natural habitat, surprising scientists. One of the dolphins even caught 69 fish while others ate sea snakes.
The photos and videos were published together with a paper on the portal Plos One. What was most surprising was that “the fish continued to escape and swim even when they entered the dolphin’s mouth, but the dolphin seemed to suck the fish,” says the study.
The goal of this successful research was to listen to the sounds of dolphins as they chase, capture and eat prey. Additionally, capture the movements of their eyes, throat and mouth while hunting.
A) Yes, They managed to record videos that they classified as “impressive chases” and also gave an account of a peculiar technique that they use to catch their prey: suction. A video shows how a dolphin pursues a fish in depth and manages to catch it with the force of its jaw.
Dolphins communicate with screeches as they hunt
In the same way, They also managed to capture how they communicate and the sounds they make while they are hunting.. “While the dolphins hunted, they made noises almost constantly at intervals of 20 to 50 milliseconds,” they explain.
“Upon approaching prey, noise intervals shorten to a terminal buzz and then a screech. Upon contact with the fish, the buzzing and screeching noises were almost constant until the fish was swallowed”, adds the study.
Specifically, “one dolphin caught 69 resident fish, 64 demersal and 5 near the surface, while the other caught 40, 36 demersal and 4 near the surface. Simultaneously, two other dolphins were observed capturing 135 live native fish in a pool of seawater.
But what surprised the researchers was that a dolphin consumed 8 yellow-bellied sea snakes (Hydrophis platurus), which are poisonous. However, following locating it and checking it, it was concluded that it did not show any damage or sequelae due to the poison.
The scientists also noticed the comical images of the dolphins’ faces from the angle at which some cameras were positioned.
