An Aquarium Enthusiast Shares Their Passion Vol. 22: 'Enjoying Bottlenose Dolphins at the Aquarium'

When watching bottlenose dolphins at an aquarium, their innocent behavior is what leaves the biggest impression. They chase each other with close friends or play using floating objects like buoys.

When a diver is cleaning the pool, the dolphins are full of curiosity, as if they want some attention. It feels just like watching children playing in a park.

Sometimes, they even play by poking at the bubbles they create themselves. It's hard to tell in photos, but they were playing by snapping at the bubbles.

It is said that dolphins in the wild also play by poking at jellyfish. Being able to turn anything nearby into a toy might be a common trait among mammals, just like human children.

They even held their small fish snacks in their mouths as if to show them off. Perhaps they taste better if they let them dry out a little.

Bottlenose dolphin shows are a popular event at aquariums. When I first saw a bottlenose dolphin performance, I was surprised by their powerful swimming and jumping.

They are incredibly fast swimmers. Even when I try to take a picture, they are already somewhere else by the time I'm ready. The moment they jump out of the water, they are flying like birds.

Watching them like that, I started to think, 'Are bottlenose dolphins incredibly muscular?' When you see a bottlenose dolphin's big jump, it's not just a big jump anymore; it's even higher than that.

They jump with great force and touch a ball that is high enough to look up at (probably about 5 to 6 meters high).

The body length of a bottlenose dolphin is generally about 2 to 4 meters. In other words, they are larger than humans and jump out of the water like rockets. I cannot even imagine how much power they have or how they generate such propulsion.

From jumping to posing, bottlenose dolphin show performances are diverse. While watching such performances, I suddenly thought of something.

Bottlenose dolphins are so smart to be able to remember their performances so well.

I was just casually enjoying the show, but when I think about it, they perform a variety of actions.

• Swimming at high speed

• Swimming while creating waves

• Jumping high

• Doing forward and backward rolls

• Jumping while twisting their bodies

• Making vocalizations

• Making sounds as if they are singing

• Striking a pose

• Shaking hands with a trainer

• Waving their tail flukes

When you break them down, there are truly so many performances that dolphins put on. For me, there are so many that I might even forget a few.

Bottlenose dolphins understand the trainer's signals and perform their routines perfectly.

Don't you think that's pretty amazing? I mean, whenever I try to remember more than three things, I make mistakes here and there.

Like, 'Wait, what was it again!?'

At least as far as I've seen, I don't recall ever seeing a dolphin make a mistake during a performance. That is exactly why I think of dolphins as 'professionals' working alongside us at the aquarium.

Sometimes there are 'a bit clumsy ones,' but I've started to think that even that might be part of the 'act.' I might just be being played like a fiddle by the dolphins.

If you have the chance to visit an aquarium, please try observing the characteristics of the bottlenose dolphins and watching their show performances. I think that learning about their strength and intelligence, not just their cuteness, will be a great way to spark your interest in bottlenose dolphins.

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