emilygrose97
Dolphin Vacay
I took this picture on MLK Day on the south end of Wrightsville Beach at Masonboro Inlet which separates Masonboro Island and Wrightsville. The inlet is characterized by a jetty which helps prevent longshore transport of sediment down the coast onto the uninhabited, protected Masonboro Island. This inlet is not only important for ships to access the Intercoastal Waterway from the Atlantic, but also for animals like the common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus). Even though I only snapped a picture of one dolphin breaching the water, I counted about 7 dolphins, making it a pod of dolphins. This social group of dolphins uses the power of numbers to survive and thrive in the environment. These carnivores were most likely hunting fish and other organisms that dwell in the inlet. Dolphins are carnivores because they feed exclusively on the tissues of other animals (Smith & Smith 127). One of the advantages of this population of Tursiops truncatus, a group of one species, is they work together to attain food and resources. Since the dolphins are predators and carnivores, they need to consume a large amount of prey, an ecological resource, in order to maintain their body mass, internal systems (respiratory, osmoregulatory), and homeostasis or regulation of an animal's internal conditions (Smith & Smith 129). These dolphins working together as a population helps them survive and consume enough food to maintain their internal processes which require a lot of energy. Tursiops truncatus have a wide range of habitat across the world and are a typical species found off the coast of Wilmington, NC. Their niche is typically their role as a tertiary predator in the aquatic environment with only humans and sharks being a threat. I think this picture is important because it shows how close these vital, complex animals are to the coast and how our actions along the coast directly affect the environment and populations like this one of the common bottlenose dolphin.
Dolphin Vacay
I took this picture on MLK Day on the south end of Wrightsville Beach at Masonboro Inlet which separates Masonboro Island and Wrightsville. The inlet is characterized by a jetty which helps prevent longshore transport of sediment down the coast onto the uninhabited, protected Masonboro Island. This inlet is not only important for ships to access the Intercoastal Waterway from the Atlantic, but also for animals like the common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus). Even though I only snapped a picture of one dolphin breaching the water, I counted about 7 dolphins, making it a pod of dolphins. This social group of dolphins uses the power of numbers to survive and thrive in the environment. These carnivores were most likely hunting fish and other organisms that dwell in the inlet. Dolphins are carnivores because they feed exclusively on the tissues of other animals (Smith & Smith 127). One of the advantages of this population of Tursiops truncatus, a group of one species, is they work together to attain food and resources. Since the dolphins are predators and carnivores, they need to consume a large amount of prey, an ecological resource, in order to maintain their body mass, internal systems (respiratory, osmoregulatory), and homeostasis or regulation of an animal's internal conditions (Smith & Smith 129). These dolphins working together as a population helps them survive and consume enough food to maintain their internal processes which require a lot of energy. Tursiops truncatus have a wide range of habitat across the world and are a typical species found off the coast of Wilmington, NC. Their niche is typically their role as a tertiary predator in the aquatic environment with only humans and sharks being a threat. I think this picture is important because it shows how close these vital, complex animals are to the coast and how our actions along the coast directly affect the environment and populations like this one of the common bottlenose dolphin.