Page 83 - (DK) Super Shark Encyclopedia: And Other Creatures of the Deep

WHIRLING

WONDER

SPINNER DOLPHIN

Dolphins and whales are famous for their playful
acrobatics in the ocean. The spinner dolphin is one of
the most agile and gets its name from its twisting leaps.
It shoots up through the water like a corkscrew, so that
when it breaks clear of the surface, it spins in the air.
Some dolphins are so eager that they do this many
times in succession.

AT A GLANCE

• SIZE 4 ⁄4–7½ ft (1.3–2.3 m) long • LOCATION Throughout
1
• HABITAT Warm ocean waters, the tropical parts of the
world’s oceans
usually near coastlines but
sometimes on the high seas • DIET Fish, squid, and shrimp,
hundreds of miles from land mostly taken at night
Long, Slender
thin body
beak

STATS AND FACTS

1.25 LEAPING HEIGHT
SEC
ft 3 6 9 12
TIME SPENT IN AIR
m 2 4
9¾ ft (3 m)
Spinning leaps may DIVING DEPTH
help dolphins socialize
in their groups. They ft 300 600 900 1,200
could also be a way
of removing clinging m 100 200 300 400
barnacles from 655–985 ft
SPIN ON THE SEA their bodies. (200–300 m)
WEIGHT
When spinner dolphins get
together in groups they like lb 50 100 150 200
nothing better than to show
80
100
off. They make spinning leaps MAX. ROTATIONS PER LEAP kg 20 40 60 130–174 lb
headfirst from the water and 7 (60–79 kg)
then land on their side with
a big splash.
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