Some people are Horse Girls but today we discover that Sarah is a Dolphin Girl. This week we dive into the surprisingly complicated world of dolphins, and if daily dolphin life isn't already complicated enough, dolphin motherhood turns it into an extreme sport. Sources Janik, V. M., & Sayigh, L. S. (2013). Communication in bottlenose dolphins: 50 years of signature whistle research. Journal of Comparative Physiology A, 199(6), 479–489. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-013-0817-7 Janik, V. M., Sayigh, L. S., & Wells, R. S. (2006). Signature whistle shape conveys identity information to bottlenose dolphins. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 103(21), 8293–8297. Sayigh, L. S., El Haddad, N., Tyack, P. L., Janik, V. M., Wells, R. S., & Jensen, F. H. (2023). Bottlenose dolphin mothers modify signature whistles in the presence of their own calves. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 120(27), e2300267120. Wells, R. S. (2000). The bottlenose dolphin: Social relationships in a fission–fusion society. In J. Mann, R. C. Connor, P. L. Tyack, & H. Whitehead (Eds.), Cetacean Societies: Field Studies of Dolphins and Whales (pp. 199–225). University of Chicago Press. Krützen, M., Mann, J., Heithaus, M. R., Connor, R. C., Bejder, L., & Sherwin, W. B. (2005). Cultural transmission of tool use in bottlenose dolphins. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 102(25), 8939–8943. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0500232102 Fahlman, A., van der Hoop, J., Moore, M. J., Levine, G., Howle, L. E., & Wells, R. S. (2018). Field energetics and lung function in wild bottlenose dolphins, Tursiops truncatus, in Sarasota Bay, Florida. Royal Society Open Science, 5(2), 171200. Lyamin, O., Pryaslova, J., Kosenko, P., & Siegel, J. (2007). Behavioral aspects of sleep in bottlenose dolphin mothers and their calves. Physiology & Behavior, 92(4), 725–733. Williams, T. M., Friedl, W. A., & Haun, J. E. (1993). The physiology of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus): Heart rate, metabolic rate and plasma lactate concentration during exercise. Journal of Experimental Biology, 179, 31–46. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). (2025, March 6). Common bottlenose dolphin. Robeck, T. R., Steinman, K. J., Yoshioka, M., Jensen, E., O’Brien, J. K., Katsumata, E., Gili, C., McBain, J. F., Sweeney, J., & Monfort, S. L. (2005). Estrous cycle, ovarian activity, and serum concentrations of reproductive hormones in the bottlenose dolphin. Biology of Reproduction, 72(2), 336–346. Noren, S. R. (2008). Infant carrying behaviour in dolphins: Costly parental care in an aquatic environment. Functional Ecology, 22(2), 284–288. Noren, S. R. (2013). Altered swimming gait and performance of dolphin mothers: Implications for interactions with tuna purse-seine fisheries. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 482, 255–263. Have a good topic we should fixate on or want to reach out? Find us here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fixationrotationpod/ Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@fixationrotationpod Email: fixationrotationpod@gmail.com
