Dolphin Communication

K.P.M.P. Gunathilaka
Content
• Introduction
• Vocal cues
• Non Vocal Acoustic cues
• Visual cues
• Tactile cues
• Echolocation
Introduction
• Dolphins produce a number of variety modes of signals for
communication.
• These modes include vocal signals, non vocal auditory signals, visual
signals and tactile signals.
• They don’t have an ability to smell in underwater.
• Dolphins release some chemicals to transmit information like arousal
levels or reproductive status.
Vocal cues
• Dolphins produce two types of vocal signals.
⮚ Pure tones
⮚ Pulsed tones

• As pure tones whistles, chirps and screams are produced by dolphins.

o Whistles – whistles are produced in social situations, when excited,

happy, panicked or when separated from friends. Different whistles
produce in different situations.
o Signature whistle - A unique whistle for every dolphin. It helps to find
the others when a dolphin lost its way from the group.

• As pulse tones echolocation clicks and burst pulses are produced.

o Echolocation clicks - are used for sonar purposes.

o Burst pulses - are used when they are aggressive. It gives information
about their emotional state.
Non Vocal Acoustic cues
• Tail slap – hit the water surface with their tails. It is an aggressive
behavior that uses to getting attention of friends.
• Flipper slap – uses for the same purpose as in tail slap.
• Jaw claps – use as threatening to others or as a play aggression. Hard
to identify the difference between them.
• Chuffs - also use to show aggression.
• Breaches – It produces sounds that convey about its emotional or
motivational state.
Visual cues
• From the spots on the body of some species their age can be
determined.
• They show S like posture to show anger or aggression.
• Synchronize behavior is a sign that they are in s close relationship
with their partners.
• Object carrying by males is a signal for females to select a strong male
for mating.
• Use poop as a warning signal.
Tactile cues
• Dolphins rub the bodies of their friends and rest their fin at the back of
their friends as a sign of friendly affiliative contact.
• They slam , smack each other with their bodies as aggressive behavior.
Echolocation
• Dolphins purposely echolocate on an object with sending echo clicks
to other friends near them.
• Friends get mental image about the object through these echo clicks.
• This is something like a communication.
References
• Clicks, whistles and pulses: Passive and active signal use in dolphin
communication - Denise L. Herzing
• Dolphin communication -
https://www.dolphincommunicationproject.org