The sociable SEAFARER

Tumbling and turning through the surf, the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) is one of the sea’s most social species. Living in pods of up to 15, they form close-knit communities, cooperating to catch food, avoid sharks and take care of newborns. Once a calf joins the ranks, its mother will accompany it for up to three years, teaching it how to hunt and where to roam via a series of whistled signals. Scientists have found that a female will call in this way ten times more often after giving birth – it’s thought to help her young learn to identify her ‘voice’. Found throughout the UK, bottlenoses are commonly spotted in the Moray Firth, Cardigan Bay and off the coast of Cornwall.