Dolphin Parenting | National Geographic

in all dolphin species young dolphins
aren’t born with the skills necessary to
fend for themselves in fact the
mortality rate for dolphin calves is 50%
in the first year what they are born
with is the ability to mimic and mirror
whatever their mother does and this is
how they learn to survive the calf
becomes mom shadow imitating her every
move
hose posture and action if mom stands up
on her tail so does her cow come on
parents don’t you wish you could get
this kind of cooperation of all the
skills that mom has to teach junior the
most important one is how to find
she gives it instructions which sound
like this when fish hear her they run
for cover burrowing themselves into the
sand the dolphins then utilize what’s
called echolocation a kind of dolphin
sonar system where their voice echoes
back giving them a clear idea of what
fishy delights lie beneath the surface
as mom looks for food her calf continues
to mimic her every move another
technique for the young wants to master
hydroplaning in the shallows these
dolphins rock it along a tremendous
speed their bodies half in and half out
of the water
now watch just how effective this
technique is for catching fish Oh gotcha
effective yes but not all dolphins have
mastered the art of hydroplaning and
those who have get that show off of it
they toss the catch and play with it and
they parade it underwater too now why
doesn’t another dolphin try to grab it
this might be a ritual to establish
trust or maybe the other dolphins just
want to avoid getting in a fight so this
is the last thing the dolphin calf
learns from mom
playing with your food is not only okay
it gives you status with your fellow
dolphins