Dolphins Hooked with Cameras by the US Navy Returned with Pretty Wild Footages

The US Navy's cameras on dolphins recorded some bizarre and outlandish footage. Our first-ever film from the perspective of dolphins freely hunting off the coast of North America is composed of a swarm of clicks and triumphant squeals.

(Photo : Photo by RAYMOND ROIG/AFP via Getty Images)

Body Cammed Dolphins

The US Navy granted their dolphins full reign to hunt in San Diego Bay after strapping cameras to them and training them to assist detect underwater explosives and safeguard some of the country's nuclear arsenal.

To the researchers' amazement, the cunning marine animals delivered thrilling chases and targeted poisonous sea snakes.

We still don't fully understand many fundamental aspects of these very gregarious and frequently disgusting cetaceans, including their regular feeding habits, although they are well-known and widely popular creatures.

Wild Dolphins

The consensus among researchers is that there are at least two methods: sucking up prey like noodles from a dish and chowing them down like a state fair hot dog in between rides.

But a lot more has been revealed by the video.

Six bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) were equipped with cameras from the US National Marine Mammal Foundation (NMMF), which captured footage and audio for six months. These recordings have given us new insights into these mammals' hunting techniques and social interactions.

Their lips and eyes were seen in startlingly off-angle positions when the recording equipment was positioned on their sides or backs.

Also Read: Extremely Rare Dolphin Found Dead in a Beach in the Philippines

Efficient Hunters

(Photo : Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Although these dolphins are not in the wild, they are regularly given a chance to hunt in the open ocean to supplement their typical frozen fish diet. Therefore, as the NMMF marine mammal veterinarian Sam Ridgway and colleagues explain, it is probable that these species behave similarly to their wild cousins.

They state, "As dolphins searched, they clicked practically continuously at intervals of 20 to 50 ms." "On contact with fish, buzzing and screaming were practically continual until the fish was consumed," according to the study. "On approaching prey, click intervals shorten into a terminal buzz and finally a shriek."

More than 200 fish, including bass, croakers, halibut, smelt, and pipefish, were captured by the dolphins with cameras fastened to them. The smelt frequently threw themselves into the air to flee the cunning hunters.

However, the dolphins kept track of their every move and used a method they had previously seen in wild dolphins, swimming upside down to provide their swiveling eyes with a clear view.

Ridgway and colleagues said, "These dolphins appeared to employ both sight and hearing to detect food." Up close, eyesight and echolocation appeared to be used in conjunction, but dolphins always used echolocation to detect fish at a distance.

The cameras also captured the sound of the animals' racing hearts as they struggled to keep up with the demanding activities. This footage showed that instead of ramming their prey to the ground, the dolphins used suction to gulp down their still-fighting prey with their mighty throat muscles.

The dolphins' neck muscles sprang into action, and their tongues retracted out of the way as they largely swallowed fish into the sides of their open mouths. Their muscles for sucking add to the negative pressure produced by the increased inner mouth space.

Fearless Display

Although dolphins have been observed playing with snakes in the past, including river dolphins amusing a ridiculously huge anaconda, the video provided definitive evidence that dolphins may also consume these animals.

Eight very deadly yellow-bellied sea snakes were eaten by one dolphin (Hydrophis platurus).