Dolphins Echolocation

What is this term of dolphins echolocation? It also known as dolphin sonar, or the ability to explore and detect things in their environment. In May (1991) it is cited that sound travels 4 1/2 times faster in water than in air, so this is a very quick process, and it is assumed that all types of dolphins have this ability.

Dolphins generate sounds by using "clicks" to communicate and an echo of the click is received back, where another one is then generated again. This time lapse between echos helps the dolphin to determine distance, size, etc., of an object. This is an extremely sensitive and complex process.

The echolocation system could be part of the reason behind how dolphin-assisted therapy (dat) works too. A person can actually feel their body being scanned and hear the echolocation of the dolphin. This process could have an effect on biological tissue when combined in the water, and with the intelligence of the dolphin to focus their echolocation on the weak, ailing or abnormalities of a person.

Whitlow (1993) in his book “The Sonar of Dolphins”, says that the dolphin’s ability to discriminate and recognize features of targets with its sonar is a characteristic that man-made sonar systems do not possess, and therefore is superior to our own instruments.

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