#dusky dolphin

[howlsnteeth]

🐬

[snototter]

A dusky dolphin (Aethalodelphis obscurus) breaches in Aotearoa

by Angus McNab

[have-you-seen-this-animal]

Have you seen the dusky dolphin (Aethalodelphis obscurus)?

I have now

Yes, in photos/videos

Yes, irl

I'm not sure

Voting ended onJun 14

[marine-gifs]

Dusky dolphins. From Ocean Souls (2020).

[namu-the-orca]

We're treating and we're tricking

Dolphin calling sounds like clicking

A humpback's at a meeting

And snacking krill for treating

:)

Helloooo thank you for your lovely little poem it made me giggle :> Don't worry I still want to get to all the tricks and treats in between commission work! Its just a bit slooowww. But with the baby dolphin done I could do a lil study of these Duskies.

I have a soft spot for Duskies - I once started painting a ton of them for a painting I've never finished (however thinking of it, I would like to). Their faces are so long and funny. And I love when they swim in green waters like this, slowly turning into spectres.

The beautiful original photo is taken in Tierra del Fuego; I decided to flip it because I like the composition better this way. Once again from Inaturalist and shared under CC-BY-NC license.

I hope you like it and thank you all for your patience!

[respect-the-locals]

🐬 Daily Cetacean Fact: 🐬

Dusky Dolphin: The dusky dolphin is known for its remarkable acrobatics, having a number of aerial behaviours. They perform a number of aerial displays, including leaps, head-over-tail leaps, backslaps, headslaps, tailslaps, spins, and noseouts, are often done over and over again. Adults may perform different leaps in different contexts, and calves may independently learn how to perform leaps, as well as learn when to perform these when interacting others.

[anotherlongtimetraveler]

Okay then follow up question. Now that you're a merperson, what aquatic friend is your go-to companion? Octopus? Shark?

👀

So I got a bit invested in this.. *sweats* And this post got way longer than I expected. I tried not to blabber on too much, but... uh... I still added a lot laskjfslk

Since this post is so long (with images too!), I'll put it all under the cut for easier scrolling!

SO,

 

My first choice would have to be a seahorse or a clownfish :3 The little guy(s) could cling to or hide in my hair, tickling my neck or something as they play. I imagine the seahorse would be the worrywart since they can't swim very well. The clown fish would be a worrier too, but would disguise it with humor.

 

If I were to pick a larger creature, it would have to be a bottlenose, a spinner, or a dusky dolphin, as they tend to be very smart, inquisitive creatures.

The bottlenose dolphin is one of the most common types of dolphins and probably the most well-known around the eastern coast of North America. They are super smart and are known to have a "high tolerance" for humans regardless of age or gender (this makes them sound like the exasperated mom telling her children to stop poking each other). They are also known for fighting sharks, jabbing them in the abdomen or gills with their strong snouts, causing severe internal damage (they'll go so far as hunting sharks and eating them too!). Additionally, they can be very protective of humans.

 

The Spinner dolphin is one of the most acrobatic types of dolphins, often jumping up and "spinning" up to seven times mid-jump before landing in the water again. They also tend to charge predators (like sharks) similarly to the Bottlenose Dolphin.

 

The Dusky dolphins are just,

very pretty 🤭

I mean, just loOK:

LOOK HOW PRETTY Dusky Dolphine also love to play and leap, much like the others. Unfortunetly, they are being hunted off the coast of Peru for shark bait and human consumption despite a ban. They are now an endangered species.

 

If I couldn't pick a dolphin (just for originality's sake), I would have to go with a manta ray. Specifically, the Reef Manta Ray, Blue Spotted Stingray, or Butterfly Ray.

The Reef Manta Ray is one of the largest rays in the world, reaching a disc size up to 16ft (5m). Most of the time, though, they are seen only as big as 11ft (3m) big. These rays do not have any barbs, a stinger, or teeth. Out of fight, flight, or freeze, these guys only have flight. They swallow their food whole.

 

The Blue Spotted Stingray are typically a pale or dull yellow in color with electric blue spots. Despite their eye-catching details (to humans), these lil guys are very timid. They like to hide and stay out of the spotlight. Despite this, their stingers are very painful (not known to kill... yet) and can cause nausea, muscle cramps, and possibly shortness of breath.

 

Finally, the Butterfly Ray is another large ray, reaching up to 13ft (4m) in disc size with extremely wide pectoral fins that resemble butterfly wings (hence the name). Comparatively, they have very short tails.

 

BUT there are other creatures too!!

The Dumbo octopus and the umbrella octopus are really cute, and I simply MUST share them 🙃

They also get confused often because they look so similar..

Literally named after Disney's Dumbo, the Dumbo octopus has two prominent ear-like fins that extend from the mantle above each eye. They can only be found in highly pressurized waters (deep ocean) and the are the deepest living octopi known.

 

Umbrella octopuses are characterized by a web of skin connecting their arms, resembling an umbrella when spread their legs. They also have "ears" like the Dumbo octopus, but they tend to be smaller and act only as stabilizers.

 

After talking about them, I must also share the Vampire Squid or as scientists lovingly called it "the squid from hell." But its not a squid! It not an octopus either! They don't know what it is! (At least, not at first). The Vampire squid had to be put in its own class because its so different! This guy has bioluminescent organs and thrives in low-oxygenated waters.

 

Now, if I were to go mythological, I'd prolly pick a Hippocampus (like from PJ).

[earhartsease]

make of this what you will, for we know not:

we fell asleep just now and dreamt we met a really gorgeous dolphin - one of the ones with white stripes, what's the name

and he was on tumblr and his url was (and this is where we find out if he's actually here) @piss-and-muesli (nope not yet, so have at it)

and then we woke up needing to piss - and then we got ourselves some muesli

oh he was a Dusky Dophin (southern hemisphere dudes) aren't they gorgeous with that charcoal snoot - and yes why not here is the muesli, now the circle is complete