A dolphin is a unique animal. There are many different types of dolphins, but the one I'm writing is the bottlenose dolphin. It is called the bottlenose dolphin because its roundness to their back. Also people say it shaped like a bottle. If you would like to read more about the bottlenose dolphin read on.

    A mother and its calf! 

Life Cycle

BIRTH

             When the dolphin is born it is 3 feet long. It is also called a calf when it is little. It is born by its mother not by eggs. When a dolphin is born, its born by tail first. A newborn calf has no air in its lungs. When its born  it sinks towards the bottom of the ocean, but its mother quickly guides it to the surface. That is what a calf is like when it is born.

YOUTH

               A newborn dolphin is nursed by it's mother for a year and a half. The mother punishes it's calf by trapping it in between her fins for a few seconds. Also the calf's teeth grow in a single row on the upper and lower jaw.

MATURITY 

                 When a dolphin becomes an adult it can swim up to 31 mph. Also it is 13 feet long. Another thing is that dolphins have large brains and great vision. Also they have up to 76 to 100 teeth. Calves become adults when it is 8 to 10 years old. Lastly adult dolphins swim to warm waters to have babies. The babysitters learn how to care for their calves so they will be better mothers. Adult dolphins mature quickly and easily.

DEATH

               Dolphins can die many ways such as fishing nets, predators, and fisherman. Dolphins eat trash in the sea and choke on it. Also dolphins can die from fishing nets because they follow tuna into  the nets ,then they get stuck. Lastly they get eaten by their predators such as a shark. Dolphins population is going down each day and we should do whatever we can to help them because they are beautiful and unique animals and they should not be harmed.

Men killing the dolphins.

Dead dolphins on the shore of the Persian Gulf. This should not happen.

Many dolphins died from the oil spill in the gulf.

A dead baby dolphin(calf).

The Japanese killing the dolphins for meat. That's very wrong to do.

I put up all those pictures of dead dolphins to show you that its wrong to kill dolphins. Also the pictures go with the title death. Also that's why u shouldn't throw trash or dangerous fluids in lakes,creeks, or oceans.Please help stop this cruel activity

A dolphin resting its head for a few seconds! 

 Behavior

DEFENDING ITSELF

                 Dolphins defend themselves by jumping in the air. It confuses its predator. They also hide in weeds and plants so their predators do not see them. A dolphin can defend itself many ways.

SLEEPING   

                    When a dolphin sleeps it lets one half of its brain sleep while the other half is aware and awake, so if a predator tries to hurt it. Dolphins always have to be aware wheather their awake or asleep.

PARENTING

                          When a dolphin has a baby it keeps it close by, so it doesn't get hurt. A mother dolphin punishes its calf by trapping it in between its two front fins. That way the calf can learn a lesson. Mother dolphins take care of their calves nicely and lovingly.

A dolphin leaping in the air!

Physical Characteristics

               Some characteristics of a dolphin make it special. Dolphins are 13 feet long and weigh 600 pounds.A dolphins color is light and dark gray. Also a dolphins skin covering is made up of blubber. Blubber is a layer of that lies beneath the skin of the dolphin. Blubber keeps a dolphin warm. Another feature is a special body  which is the front flippers. The front flipper helps the dolphin to control its direction. Another special body part is echolocation. Echolocation is a sound wave that shows that its prey is coming so it can get ready to trap it. There are some great characteristics of a bottlenose dolphin dolphin.

Great White Shark VS  Dolphin!!!!

Compare/Contrast

CONTRAST

      A dolphin and a shark are different in many ways. A dolphin is a mammal and a shark is a fish. Also a dolphin takes care of its babies by keeping it close by and a shark keeps it's babies safe by keeping the baby inside of its body until the baby is grown. Lastly a dolphin protects itself by jumping in the air to trick its predator and a shark protects itself by eating the other animals. You can see that dolphins and sharks are different in many ways.  

COMPARE

                  A dolphin and a shark only have two similarities and one is they both hunt. Another similarity is their both carnivores. As you can see the dolphin and the shark aren't similar at all.

               A bottlenose dolphin is quick, beautiful, funny, and kind. It is used in animal shows. They can jump in the air at fanstatic speeds. Well there are some nice things to learn about the bottlenose dolphin! I hope you enjoyed reading about it!

              MEET THE AUTHOR!

      Hello,my name is Shelby. I am 11 years old. I like hanging out with my friends,riding my bike,playing sports,and drawing. I am writing about dolphins because  my mom loves dolphins. So I surprised her and wrote about dolphins and she loved it. I just thought I should give something back to her because she does so much for me!

A dolphin picture collage when dolphins are having fun!<3

FUN FACTS  

• A Male dolphin is called a bull, the mother dolphin is called a cow, and the baby dolphin is called a calf. 

• Dolphins are friendly and intelligence.

• Dolphins make friends with divers,swimmers,and people.

• Dolphins swim up to 31 mph. 

• Bottlenose dolphins are used in animal shows around the world!