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Organism Physiology

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Organism Physiology Paper
Georgetta Bond
Biology 101
4/8/2013
Brandy McFadden

Organism Physiology Paper

Family: Delhinidae, Genus: Delphinus, Kingdom: Anamalia, Species: Delphins also know as Dolphins Class: mammalia. Dolhins occupy all oceans and seas and some are even in some large rivers. This paper will include the characteristics of the dolphin, what adaptations dolphins been through and why they have and are survivor today , and their ancestry to the modern dolphins.
Adaptation
(dolphinear.com) Dolphins have adapted to their environment. Dolphins have come a very long way however they are able to survive because of these adaptations. The dolphins’ nose is long because it's long nose helps them kill sharks. A fish's back fin goes side to side. Its tail goes up and down in order to help it dive up to get air. They need to save oxygen while they dive underwater in order to do this, the dolphines body adapts in several ways. Their heart beats slows while diving, and their blood goes away from other parts of the body and goes to their heart, lungs, and brain. Another way a dolphin saves its oxygen is in its muscles. The muscles of a dolphin have a special protein called myoglobin. Myoglobin stores oxygen.
(ego4u.com ) Blubber (fat) helps the dolphin stay warm in cold water. Their blubber also help to streamlines their body and helps it them swim quickly and smoothly. Dolphin breathes from its blowhole and it closes the blowhole before entering the water so water won't get in.
A dolphin’s only have baby teeth (or one set of teeth), which they use to catch fish. However dolphins have large brains in relation to the size of their bodies. This shows that they are very smart. These are some of the ways the dolphin adapts to its environment.

Characteristics Dolphins are very intelligent and they seem to be well loved by humans. They are part of the mammal family and they have been able to fascinate us in a variety of ways. They are curious, form strong bonds within their pod, and they have also been known to help humans in a variety of circumstances including rescues and with fishing. They are one of the most familiar and unique marine mammals known to people and occupy all the major oceans and seas of the world. Most dolphins live in saltwater but however there are some dolphins that are able to do well in the freshwater locations. Dolphins are mainly found in the freshwater of the Amazon River. Dolphins length average is from 8 ft and weighed between 400 to 570 lbs. However in some regions they dolphins can average 3.7 m long and weigh 454 kg. An average, full-grown males dolphins are slightly longer than females, and considerably heavier. As juveniles, however, females grow at a faster rate until about 10 years of age. A dolphin has a well-defined rostrum.

The body of a dolphin is streamlined and it is designed for them to be able to swim very fast, even for long periods of time. A dolphins’ skin is extremely smooth, and very hairless, is thick, and lacks glands. The skin is kept smooth by constantly sloughing off and being replaced. Their skin is replaced at a rate nine times faster than a human skin. The outer most layer of skin is replaced every two hours. The dolphins tent to rely on their sense of hearing to survive. Dolphins are said to have good eye sight, but in the blackness of the ocean, other senses have had to develop for survival. The shape of the dolphins melon (the fatty tissue in front of the blow hole) act sas a lens to focus sound when the dolphin produces high pitched clicks for echolocation. When the sound comes back the small bone under the chin, called thepan bone, it receives the sonic report and stimulates the brain through the inner ear. With the echolocation the dolphin can judge distance by measuring the time between emitting the clicks and the return. With them having this amazing skill, dolphins can determine the size,shape, direction of movement, and distance of objects in the water.

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All dolphins, whales, and porpoises are related. Fossil evidence has been foundfrom the early Eocene epoch that indicates early dolphins were already aquatic 45-50million years ago. It is believed that animals that spent a great deal of time looking forfood around water areas went through an amphibious stage before becoming.

Anatomy
According to dolphins-world.com the overall anatomy of the dolphin is very detailed, and designed well for them to survive in the water. They are marine animals, spending their entire life in the water. Some of the species can live in freshwater, but most of the will live in saltwater. They are very closely related to both porpoises and whales. The overall size of dolphins can range from one extreme to the next. Some of the smaller ones are about 4 feet in length and others measure as long as 30 feet. Some of them weigh about 90 pounds while others tip the scale around 11 tons. (dolphins-world.com) Dolphins do sleep, but it may not appear that way when you observe them. This is because only one hemisphere of the brain will rest at a time. The other allows them to be alert for dangers and for them to get to the surface of the water to get the air they need at regular intervals.

Beining
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In conclusion, dolphins have adapted very well to its watery world and its evolvement in shape and shill to breed very successfully. Dolphins are marine manmmals and are a part of the cetacean species which also includes whales and porpoises.

References

Anatomy of a Dolphin. Retrieved on April 4, 2013 from http://www.dolphins-world.com/Dolphin_Anatomy.html
Evolution Timeline of a While and Dolphin. Retrieved on April 8, 2013 from http://earthtrust.org/wlcurric/dolphins.html
Dolphin Evolution. Retrieved on April 7, 2013 http://understanddolphins.tripod.com/dolphinevolution.html http://www.dolphinear.com/data/dolphins.htm Dolphin adaptation. Retrieved on April 9 2013 from http://www.ego4u.com/en/read-on/animals/dolphin/facts
Serventy, Vincent. Whale and Dolphin. 1985.
Stonhouse, Bernard. A Closer Look At Whales and Dolphins. 1976.
Strachan, Elizabeth. A Closer Look at Whales and Dolphins. 1985.
World Wide Web. Seaworld/Busch Gardens. 1997

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