Dolphins Tales

                 Have you seen movies and TV shows featuring dolphins?  Maybe you have even seen dolphins in the wild or performing in shows.
                 People love to watch dolphins.  They are playful, look friendly, and often want to be with people.  But scientists still know very little about them.  To find out some of what we do know, The newspaper talked with a dolphin expert at Sea World.
An awesome family
                 Dolphins are actually small whales.  There are two groups of whales: those with teethand those without.  Dolphins fall into the group with teeth, along with killer whales and porpoises.
                 Dolphins are not fish.  They are mammels, just like we are.
Habitat
                There are about 36 different types, or species,   of dolphins.  Most of the species live in oceans throughout the world.  The majority are found in medium-temperature, or temperate seas, or in hot, or tropical, waters.  
                The well-known bottlenose dolphin lives in waters along the coasts of the world's seas.  It may migrate into river mouths or inland waters that are not quite as salty as ocean water.
                Many species live thousands of miles from shore.  Scientists know little about most of these dolphins.
                Four species of dolphins live in large rivers in Asia and South America.  They are distant cousins of ocean dolphins.
Breathing hole
                Like all mammels, dolphins must breathe air.  They breathe through a hole in their heads called a blowhole.       
                A muscular covering blocks the blowhole when the dolphin is underwater.  This keeps water from entering its lungs.  The dolphin holds its breath underwater.