For the first time ever, researchers have replicated the view of a dolphin as it encountered a male diver, according to Discovery News. The image, which is of a submerged man, sheds light on the high level of detail dolphins acquire through echolocation and has led scientists to speculate that dolphins may share these images with each other as a part of a unique marine mammal language.
"We now think it is safe to speculate that dolphins may employ a 'sono-pictorial' form of language, a language of pictures that they share with each other. If that proves to be true, an exciting future lies ahead for inter species communications," said Jack Kassewitz, the search team leader.
The research took place at the Dolphin Discovery Center in Puerto Aventuras, Mexico, and measured the echolocation beam that was aimed at a submerged diver using high specification audio equipment to record to signal, according to Mashable.
"We employed a similar technique in 2012 to capture a dolphin's echolocation picture of a flowerpot and several other submerged plastic objects, but the present research has confirmed that result and so much more," said Kassewitz.
The results show that dolphins can sense more than just the shadow of an object with echolocation and can also resolve surface feature, according to Independent.
"The dolphin has had around 50 million years to evolve its echolocation sense whereas marine biologists have studied the physiology of cetaceans for only around five decades and I have worked with [acoustics physicist] John Stuart Reid for barely five years," he said. "Even so, our recent success has left us all speechless."
