Dolphins possess intelligent and sophisticated minds, capable of learning new things and passing this knowledge on to other cetaceans.
Some people argue that dolphins are intelligent, but how smart they are is another debate. To understand dolphins’ intelligence, we must learn to examine their remarkable brains.
In this blog post, we will explore dolphin intelligence, anatomy, and learning curves to discover what makes these cetaceans smarter than other species.
Dolphins Intelligence
Knowledge of animal cognition is complex and requires proper attention to learn about animal behaviors and responses to certain situations. It depends on the animal’s inherited and developed intelligence. Intelligence is fundamentally the innate ability to learn new things and apply that knowledge in real life.
Self-awareness, problem-solving, emotional distress, joy, and playfulness are major psychological behaviors that dolphins can learn, depending on their intelligence. These species are great at social interactions, especially mimicking human behaviors very well.
Emotional Intelligence
Many studies show that dolphins possess emotional intelligence specifically for their fellow cetaceans. Their pods can provide substantial information on the dolphins’ emotional behaviors as a response to certain situations.
A dolphin pushed its deceased pod mate for days in the ocean, leading scientists to believe that dolphins feel grief towards their mates.
During the largest science conference, Lori Marino and her colleagues proposed a document to recognize dolphins’ status. They proposed calling them “Non-human persons” because they possess consciousness and self-awareness.
The declaration of their rights is proof of the fact that these cetaceans have an emotional tendency to deal with different scenarios.
Social Intelligence
Dolphins generally live in pods. The size of the pods varies, but the average pod size is between four and sixteen dolphins. Dolphins have specific bonds with their group mates that establish a social connection between them, much like that of humans.
Dolphins have special Von Economo Neurons (VENs) that help them make decisions during complex situations. They have a three times more significant number of neurons than humans.
Communication in Dolphins
Dolphins have complicated communication systems because they do not communicate through speech. Training dolphins enables them to perceive different scenarios through pulses, clicks, and whistles. Cetaceans do not require vision to communicate.
Strings of various pitched pulses enable them to coordinate with humans or fellow mates. Black sea bottlenose dolphins are a perfect example of this. They learn through this process as it is their conversation style.
Like humans, they communicate using a series of words that enable them to perceive different scenarios. In captivity, this helps them develop certain skills and understand human language as well.
Echolocation
Dolphins vocalization is immense and diverse. It consists of pulsed sounds, bursts, clicks, and whistles. Each vocal has a different purpose for dolphins. Bonding, coordination, social interactions, navigation, and individual recognition are differentiated based on the vocalization in the cetaceans.
Echolocation is basically a bio-sonar system inside dolphins. Due to sound waves, dolphins can quickly locate the distance of their prey, pods, and food. They have an advanced sensing system known as “click-trains”. It enables them to identify or even perceive the size of every nearby thing within 1500 meters.
Self Recognition
Research shows that dolphins have a high sense of self-awareness, which is measured through the Mirror Self-Recognition (MSR) test. To date, animals that have passed this test are European magpies, dolphins, apes, elephants, and cleaner wrasse.
An American psychologist developed this study. The animals are given anesthesia, and a mark is put on their body where it is visible. When the animal wakes up, it looks into the mirror, and if it notices the mark, it passes the test.
Dolphins actually recognize themselves in the mirror. They have a higher IQ than any other marine mammals.
Social Learning
Bottle dolphins can easily learn to forage, play, and perform tricks in the presence of instructors. Tail-walking is the most common trick that bottlenose dolphins have. It is remarkable that they can learn it by merely seeing it.
Walking on the water using the tail is generally taught to dolphins in captivity, but when that whale goes to its Pod, the other members are able to pick the trick. Other dolphins perform it in the same way as the captive one does. It is remarkable.
1This is one of the best examples of dolphins’ innate social learning abilities. It also helps them communicate and stay close for a long time.
Affiliate Interactions
Touching, rubbing, and nuzzling play crucial roles in dolphins’ interactions with other pod members. The physical interaction helps strengthen dolphin bonds.
It is common for dolphins to develop a social hierarchy. They maintain their position by showing unique behaviors, including vocalization, aggression, and body posturing.
It helps minimize conflicts between pod members. Strength is not the only factor in deciding who will be the most vital member to lead the Pod. Social, emotional, and cooperative interaction are also the main factors that decide Pod’s leader.
Are Dolphins Smarter than Humans?
Like humans, dolphins can manipulate their surroundings to make themselves comfortable, but they are not as intelligent as humans. Dolphins have unique abilities that are only present in certain animals.
Humans excel in various areas of life, while dolphins excel in sea life. Their cognitive behavior and problem-solving skills are limited to marine life. But humans have high IQs that enable them to gain more deep knowledge and understanding about situations.
Dolphins are smart, but they are not the world’s geniuses. Humans have evolved, leading them to a high level of civilization, which marine mammals do not achieve.
Dolphin Brain Size
Dolphins and whales have large brains compared to their body mass index, which is sixfold greater than that of their bodies. However, this does not mean that a large brain size is an indication of intelligence.
The brain size of these cetaceans has an average length of 1500 to 1700 grams.
Tests have shown that cetaceans with large brains are more intelligent than other ocean species. The presence of spindle neurons in their brains helps them communicate, understand, problem-solve, and remember.
The intelligence of a dolphin is mainly due to the size and structure of its brain. Here provided is a look at different aspects of dolphin brain size and insight into how it affects the dolphins’ cognitive and social skills:
Brain-to-Body Ratio
Dolphins have one of the highest brain-to-body ratios in the animal kingdom. The brain-to-body ratio in dolphins is approximately 1:50. The average-sized bottlenose dolphin has a brain size about the same as a human adult’s; 6 kilograms (3. 5 pounds).
Encephalization Quotient (EQ)
The EQ is a relative size index of the brain of an animal to its body size expected for animals of that size. Dolphins were credited to have an EQ of approximately 4. It is a value followed only by humans who have an EQ of approximately 7. Such high EQ suggests that dolphins have well-developed cognitive functions.
Cerebral Cortex
The cerebral cortex is an outer layer of the brain that is involved in higher-level functions.
Structure and Complexity
The cerebral cortex of dolphins is well developed, it has many folds, such as gyri and sulci. This enlarged surface area is related to such higher mental processes. In humans, a cerebral cortex that is folded a lot is associated with complex processing and power and here we have it in dolphins.
Functional Regions
The neocortex in the dolphin is a highly developed area, which comprises parts of the brain concerned with different tasks. It deals with sensory; motor, cognitive and others. This specialization enables the dolphins to get information very quickly and process complex behaviors.
Learning and Problem-Solving Abilities of Dolphin
Mimicry and Imitation
Apart from the vocal mimic, the dolphins are able to emulate movements of other dolphins, as well as human beings.
Tool Use
There are certain dolphin species that employ tool uses, for example, the marine sponges to cover their rostrums while probing for food on the seabed. This kind of behavior is passed from one generation to another, thus pointing to cultural learning.
Symbolic Understanding:
Dolphins are capable of comprehending symbolic language and acting on things that are expressed in a symbolic manner with the use of regular language training. Reports have proved that dolphins are capable of understanding synonyms even training from graphic images and can even follow intricate commands.
Dolphin vs Human Brain
Here a comparison of the human brain and a dolphin brain is elaborated;
| Feature | Dolphin Brain | Human Brain |
| Size | Smaller than a dolphin brain in absolute size | Smaller than dolphin brain in absolute size |
| Brain-to-Body Ratio | High (second only to humans) | Highest among all species |
| Cerebral Cortex | Highly convoluted, with more surface area | Highly developed and convoluted |
| Neocortex | Less complex than humans | Highly complex and advanced |
| Prefrontal Cortex | Smaller and less developed | Larger and more developed, critical for complex cognitive functions |
| Social Behavior | Highly social, complex social structures | Highly social, complex social structures |
| Communication | Advanced vocalizations and echolocation | Advanced language capabilities |
| Intelligence | Problem-Solving | High, capable of abstract thinking and learning |
| Self-awareness | Evidence of self-recognition and awareness | Strong self-awareness and self-recognition |
| Memory | Good long-term memory | Excellent long-term and short-term memory |
| Emotions | Shows signs of complex emotions | Wide range of complex emotions |
| Tool Use | Limited evidence of tool use | Extensive use of tools |
| Brain Structure | More compact, with certain structures enlarged | Complex, with well-defined regions |
| Vision | Less reliant on vision, more on echolocation | Highly developed vision |
| Echolocation | Highly developed echolocation capabilities | No echolocation |
| Lifespan | Similar or slightly shorter than humans | Longer average lifespan |
| Neuroplasticity | Exhibits neuroplasticity | High degree of neuroplasticity |
| Sleep | Unihemispheric slow-wave sleep (one hemisphere at a time) | Bihemispheric sleep |
| Problem Solving | Capable of solving complex problems | Highly adept at problem solving |
Conclusion
Dolphins are phenomenal, peculiar, and intelligent creatures. They have innate social skills that enable them to communicate with other pod members and humans as well.
Dolphins are more intelligent than other marine mammals because they can locate and sense the presence of other species near them. Problem-solving, echolocation, self-awareness, and emotional intelligence are some of their exceptional intelligence traits.
I hope this article serves its purpose by providing you with concise knowledge about the intelligence and smart behaviors of dolphins, which make them the most intelligent mammal species.
If you have any queries or experience about dolphins, please let us know in the comments section.
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- How selective is social learning in dolphins?. APA PsycNe ↩︎