Florida State Saltwater Mammal

Porpoise

(Tursiops truncates)

Adopted in 1975

Is it a porpoise, or is it a dolphin? Even the 1975 Florida legislature, adopting the creature as the official saltwater mammal, left the issue open, designating the "porpoise, also commonly known as the dolphin," Tursiops truncates.

Description of the Florida State Saltwater Mammal

The terms porpoise and dolphin are often used interchangeably. Usually, they refer to the bottle-nose dolphin (Tursiops truncates), the species commonly found along Florida's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. Dolphins are gray with a lighter underside. They can live to the age of thirty, occasionally attaining a length of twelve feet, although most are in the six- to eight-foot range.

Dolphins use a system of echolocation, much like sonar, to determine their orientation. They have no sense of smell. Their keen eyesight, remarkable hearing, and wide variety of sounds (barks, clicks, and whistles) make dolphins especially interesting to study.

Size: Adults average 8-10 ft.(2.5-3 m). Males may be slightly larger than females.
Weight: Adults weigh between 300-650 lb. (136-295 kg).
Diet: These active predators eat a wide variety of fish, squid, and crustaceans.
Fun Facts: Dolphins are extremely social animals and communicate through squeaks, grunts, moans and trilling sounds. They also send messages through body language by leaping, breaching (leaping out of the water and landing on their side) and smacking their tails against the water.

Taxonomic Hierarchy of the Porpoise