Is this dolphin talking to himself out of loneliness?

A solitary dolphin’s unique behavior

Almost everyone talks to themselves sometimes. But humans might not be the only animals that do this: researchers have observed this behavior in a bottlenose dolphin living in the cold waters of the Baltic Sea, near the Danish island of Funen.

A lonely life in Svendborg Sund

For years, Delle has lived alone in Svendborg Sund, far from the areas usually frequented by his fellow dolphins. Researchers at the University of Southern Denmark have been studying his behavior for several months.

A study of 10,833 sounds

In a study published in the journal Bioacoustics, they explain that they recorded 10,833 sounds produced by Delle over a period of 69 days, between December 2022 and February 2023.

Unusual vocalizations

The experts identified 2,291 whistles and 2,288 rapid clicks, sounds that dolphins usually make to interact with other dolphins. These vocalizations, known as “signature whistles”, are unique to each dolphin and play a role similar to that of a first name.

Researchers’ puzzlement

“I thought we might pick up a few distant whistles or something along those lines, but I certainly didn’t anticipate recording thousands of different sounds,” study lead author Olga Filatova, a cetacean biologist at the University of Southern Denmark, told Live Science.

A possible explanation

The researchers were puzzled by this. Delle could be making these sounds to attract the attention of a diver or a local paddleboarder, but this explanation seemed implausible, as these noises were also captured in the middle of the night.

Conclusion

It is also possible that he was trying to make contact with his fellow creatures, but this hypothesis is not especially convincing, as Delle lives in an area rarely frequented by others of his species. Filatova and colleagues believe that Delle produces these sounds to cope with his loneliness – in other words, he is talking to himself.

FAQs

Q: Why do dolphins make these sounds?
A: Dolphins use these sounds to interact with other dolphins, but in Delle’s case, it is likely that he is making these sounds to cope with his loneliness.

Q: How do dolphins usually live?
A: Dolphins are social mammals that usually swim together, interact with and protect one another, and hunt in a pod for food.

Q: What does this study reveal about dolphin intelligence?
A: This study sheds new light on the emotional intelligence of dolphins, marine mammals with impressive cognitive abilities. A 2013 study demonstrated their ability to recognize one of their fellow dolphins after 20 years apart.

Q: What can we learn from solitary dolphins like Delle?
A: Studying solitary dolphins like Delle could help us better understand the subtleties of animal communication and the complexities of their emotional lives.