Top facts about dolphins and whales!!

TOP FACTS!!

Dolphins

1. There are up to 40 species of dolphins that live in oceans.Most of them live in shallow areas of tropical and temperate oceans, and 5 species apart from those, live in rivers.
2. Dolphins are actually carnivores.Fish, squid and crustaceans, are included in their list of prey.A 260 pound dolphin eats 33 pounds of fish.
3. Dolphins are highly intelligent.They are smarter than apes, and the evolution of their brains is becoming similar to ours.
4. Dolphins are part of the whale family, including orcas and pilot whales.Killer whales are actually dolphins.
5. They live in social living groups and these groups grow up to 1,000 dolphins in each one!!
6. Depending on the species, gestation takes nine to 17 months.When they are born, dolphins are suprisingly maternal and mothers have been seen cuddling their calves.
7. By it's first birthday, a dolphin chooses a 'signature whistle' that functions as it's name.
8. Dolphins have acute eyesight both in and out of the water. They hear frequencies 10 times the upper limit of adult humans. Their sense of touch is well-developed, but they have no sense of smell.
9. Dolphins have few natural enemies. Humans are their main threat. Pollution, fishing and hunting mean some dolphin species have an uncertain future. In 2006, the Yangtze River dolphin was named functionally extinct.
10. Because dolphins are mammals, they need to come to the surface of the water to breathe. Unlike land mammals that breathe and eat through their mouths, dolphins have separate holes for each task. Dolphins eat through their mouths and breathe through their blowholes. This prevents the dolphin from sucking up water into the lungs when hunting, reducing the risk of drowning.

Whales

1. Many whales are toothless. They use a plate of comb-like fibre called baleen to filter small crustaceans and other creatures from the water.
2. There are 79 to 84 different species of whale. They came in many different shapes and sizes! 
3. A baby whale is called a calf. Whales form groups to look after calves and feed together. These groups are often made up of all female or all male whales. 
4. Whales that are found in both Northern and Southern hemisphere never meet or breed together. Their migration is timed so that they are never in breeding areas at the same time. 
5. The arched lower lip of a whale can often make it look like it is smiling! However, this isn’t a “real” smile as the blubber in the head of the whale prevents the muscles of the face from reaching the surface. 
6. You can tell the age of a whale by looking at the wax plug in its ear. This plug in the ear has a pattern of layers when cut lengthwise that scientists can count to estimate the age of the whale. 
7. Whales love to sing! They use this as a call to mates, a way to communicate and also just for fun! After a period of time they get bored of the same whale song and begin to sing a different tune. 
8. Sometimes whales make navigation mistakes during migrations. Although they may have made the mistake days before, they don’t realise it until they becoming stranded. 
9. Whales support many different types of life. Several creatures, such as barnacles and sea lice, attach themselves to the skin of whales and live there.
10. The Blue Whale is the largest creature ever to have lived on earth. Their tongues alone can weigh as much as an elephant. Their hearts, as much as a car.