Some species are well adapted for diving to great depths. They have well-developed hearing which is adapted for both air and water and is so well developed that some can survive even if they are blind. Dolphins use their conical shaped teeth to capture fast-moving prey. Though not quite as flexible as seals, some dolphins can travel at speeds 29 kilometres (18 mi) per hour for short distances. They have streamlined bodies and two limbs that are modified into flippers. Several species of dolphins exhibit sexual dimorphism, in that the males are larger than females. Dolphins can sometimes leap about 30 feet (9.1 m). There are 40 extant species named as dolphins.ĭolphins range in size from the relatively small 1.7-metre-long (5 ft 7 in) long and 50-kilogram (110-pound) bodied Maui's dolphin to the 9.5 m (31 ft 2 in) and 10-tonne (11-short-ton) killer whale. The term dolphin usually refers to the extant families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontoporiidae (the brackish dolphins), and the extinct Lipotidae (baiji or Chinese river dolphin). For other uses, see Dolphin (disambiguation).Ĭladistically included but traditionally excluded taxaĭolphin is the common name of aquatic mammals within the infraorder Cetacea. This article is about the marine mammals.
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