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Bottlenose dolphins are considered to be one
of the most intelligent marine mammals. |
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Bottlenose dolphins are typically gray in color
with white on their belly. This form of coloring
helps them camouflage themselves from orcas, tiger
sharks, dusky sharks and bull sharks. |
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They can weigh from 400-600 pounds and average
around 10 feet in length. A full grown male is considerable
larger than the female tends to grow at a faster
rate until about 10 years old. (Read, et al., 1993) |
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Bottlenose dolphins can often live between 30-50
years in the wild. |
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They are found globally but are most common in
tropical waters. The bottlenose dolphin is the most
common cetacean found along the Gulf coast. |
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You can find these animals in the open ocean but
also they are common in bay, channels and shallow
lagoon. |
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Bottlenose dolphins live in small social groups
(2- 20 dolphins). |
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They can often be seen riding the bows of ships
or performing highly acrobatic leaps. |
