The male dolphin has another special adaptation. He is able to sleep below the surface of the water because he has a special reflex action that triggers about every fifteen minutes to tell him to rise to the surface to get a breath of air. Without this reflex, the female must sleep on the surface. In some ways, the dolphins are similar to humans. Researchers believe that although some dolphin behaviors are based upon instinct, others are learned behaviors obtained by watching adults just like human children learn how to act by watching their parents.
Dolphins show cooperative behaviors.
They will work together to catch large schools of fish. Seagulls are often observed swooping down in a specific area of water because they have located a school of fish. Dolphins use this visible seagull behavior to locate fish too. They leap out of the water to see the seagulls and then swim to that same area to catch their dinner. Shrimpers in the Gulf of Mexico have a fairly compatible relationship with the dolphins.