How do dolphins communicate?

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Dolphins are some of the smartest creatures that live in the water. They are usually very friendly to people and they are very social with each other! Sometimes they can even hang out in groups with thousands of other dolphins! With that many other dolphins around, it’s really important that they can communicate with each other.   

One way they do it is by making sounds. They don’t have vocal chords like we do, but they can control muscles in their blowholes to make different noises. Some of the noises they make sound like whistles and squeaks. Some of their sounds are ultrasonic, which means they are too high in pitch for people to even hear!  

By making all these sounds, dolphins can identify themselves to each other. 

Very recently, scientists have started to believe that dolphins also talk with body language, just like people do! They move their bodies in different ways to mean different things! Their messages could be “I’m hungry!” or “I’m angry!” but scientists are still trying to figure them out.   

Body Language

Take a cue from the dolphins, and try talking using only body language. That means use different ways of standing, different arm movements, and different facial expressions to communicate things you would normally say with your voice.

How would you show someone that you are happy? How would you show someone that you are unhappy? How could you say that you are cold? Or hungry? Or scared or excited?

 What other things can you “say” without words?