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Dolphins are members of the cetacean family, which also includes whales and porpoises.

Most dolphins are social animals, living in groups, also known as pods, of several hundred. They hunt in a variety of ways, sometimes in teams, feeding on squid, shrimp, eels and a wide variety of fish.

Dolphins use a series of high-pitched clicks to build up a 'sound picture' of their surroundings by listening to the echoes bouncing off objects

There are at least three populations of bottlenose dolphins known to live in mainland UK waters - in the Moray Firth, Scotland, Cardigan Bay, Wales as well as off the coasts of Dorset, Devon and Cornwall.

One of the greatest threats to dolphins is being caught in fishing nets. Hundreds of thousands are killed every year as they follow their staple food supply of fish. They become entangled in nets and drown when they can't reach the surface to breathe.

After a gestation period of a year, dolphins give birth to a single calf that is almost half the length of its mother. It is able to swim immediately and is fully weaned at 18 months.