Day 14 - Imitate

Day 14: Imitate

We've all heard the expression "monkey see, monkey do" - but actually, that's a myth. Imitation is very rare in the animal kingdom and - apart from humans - the animal that us best at imitation is the dolphin.

We wanted to explore this ability further so we prepared two studies on imitation. In our first study, Blindfolded Imitation in a Bottle Dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) that was published by the International Journal of Comparative Psychology, we asked Tanner to copy the behaviors of another dolphin while wearing eyecups. And... he could do it! But how? Without the ability to use his vision, he must have used sound, either by echolocating to "see" the behavior, or by recognizing the characteristic sound the behavior makes,

In our second study, called Switching Strategies: A Dolphin's use of Passive and Active Acoustics to Imitate Motor Actions, we discovered that when a dolphin could recognize the behavior by its characteristic sound, he did so. When he did not, he chose to use his echolocation in order to answer the question. This study was published in Animal Cognition. With these studies, DRC has shown that dolphins not only have the ability to imitate, but can imitate with a kind of problem-solving flexibility that's never been seen outside of humans.

Although these studies are very popular in the animal cognition world, DRC also gives our guests the opportunity to learn about the dolphins' imitation abilities during our narrated behavior sessions and interactive programs. We can ask the dolphins to imitate an array of behaviors, such as laughing, waving, spinning, spitting, splashing, bobbing up and down, doing a handstand (as you see in this photo), and more. With no additional information given to the dolphins, they have demonstrated that they can watch a subject then copy that specific behavior. It's a fun experience for our guests, and ties the knowledge they gain into a memory to be shared with others.

Dolphin Research Center Photo-A-Day Challenge

_{Dolphin Research Center's Photo-A-Day Challenge starts January 1, 2016!}

Start the new year with Dolphin Research Center by participating in our very first Photo-a-Day Challenge. To continue teaching, learning, and caring for marine mammals and the environment, we’ve created a new way for our supporters to become ambassadors for our flippered family members. The best part is that you can do it from home!

The Photo-A-Day challenge starts on January 1st. There will be 31 challenges, one for each day of the month, and all you need to do is share a photo or video that relates to the daily subject on your Facebook, Twitter or Instagram pages. Use the hashtag #IHeartDRC so that everyone’s images and posts will be united!  If you don’t mind us reposting your images on our social media, go ahead and also add #DolphinResearchCenter. (We’ll always credit you for the photos we repost.)  Whether you use photos or video that you took while visiting DRC or creatively use something from your life at home, it will be fun to see how you connect your image to the each day’s challenge. 

This graphic shows you all of the challenge topics so you can start thinking about your photos. Don’t forget to post the challenge to your own pages, so we can follow your page and daily posts as well.  Whether you like, follow, or gram with us online, we cannot wait for this new venture and the chance to share DRC pride with you – our fintastic fans, friends, and family.

Go to our website, to learn more.

Learning to Train with Dolphins -- and Dogs!

DolphinLab students working with Tanner and AJ during Advanced Marine Mammal Training and Enrichment



A DolphinLab student trains a new behavior to a staff member's dog.



So many people tell us they dream of training dolphins. Not everybody gets to realize that dream but at Dolphin Research Center you can experience a lot of what is involved in working with these amazing animals.

We offer a few different DolphinLab classes that delve deeper into the training, care and enrichment of dolphins. Teen Advanced DolphinLab: Training I, for ages 15-17, and two courses for adults -- Marine Mammal Care and Basic Training and Advanced Marine Mammal Training and Enrichment courses – provide hands-on experience and academically intensive programs.

Students work side-by-side with Animal Care and Training and Education staff in multiple daily sessions where they learn to work directly with the dolphins. They also participate in various other activities – including learning how to present the dolphins to the public in a narrated behavior session.

In two of the classes, the students receive additional training experience from some canine instructors. In Teen Training I and Advanced Marine Mammal Training and Enrichment, each student works individually with a staff member’s dog. In three sessions a day, the students apply their newly-learned training principles and practices and train their dog partner a new behavior!

No other programs in the world provide this level of hands-on, in-depth training experience with dolphins and dogs, all supervised by our experienced trainers and educators. Students can also receive college credit for the two adult courses.

For more information including course dates, costs, and prerequisites, please click here to visit the DolphinLab area of our website!