BOTTLENOSE DOLPHIN VOCALIZATIONS

Vocal behavior of cetaceans, particularly bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), has captured the attention of researchers and the imagination of the world for the past four decades. Bottlenose dolphins are highly social mammals that have several potential channels for communication. Sounds of bottlenose dolphins are diverse and complex in relationship with the behaviour.

Dolphin vocalizations have traditionally been divided up into three structural types - whistles, burs-pulsed vocalizations, and echolocation clicks- and two functional categories - clicks used for orientation and navigation and burst-pulsed sounds and whistles used for social signals.

Little is know about how free-ranging wild bottlenose dolphins use their sound across changes in behaviour, group size and composition. In fact, the literature at present does not include such basic information on vocal behavior as rate of production or factors which influence this rate.

The main purpose of this program is to contribuite towards a more detailed description of bottlenose dolphin vocalizations in specific behaviours to provide additional contextual information about their potential use as communication signals. If a relationship between dolphin vocalizations and behaviour can be documented, then vocal activity may be used to provide access to important behavioural processes under a broader range of environmental and daytime conditions. We currently have only a limited knowledge of the nocturnal behaviour of bottlenose dolphins and data collected in this research may permit the analysis of nocturnal behaviour by monitoring vocalizations.