Dolphin Rider Zombie

*For the version in Plants vs. Zombies Heroes, see Dolphin Rider.*

Dolphin Rider Zombies use dolphins to exploit weaknesses in your pool defense.

The dolphin is also a zombie.

**Dolphin Rider Zombie** is a zombie seen in *Plants vs. Zombies*. He is the 15th zombie encountered in Adventure Mode and the last zombie encountered in the Pool stage. He can be considered to be an aquatic variant of the Pole Vaulting Zombie as he can vault over the first plant he encounters with his dolphin, with the exceptions being that he moves significantly faster and ignores any plant in the rightmost squares of the water lanes, including Tall-nuts, that he can't leap over normally.

## Audio

The sound that the dolphin makes before jumping.

The sound that the dolphin makes that signal his arrival at the lawn.

## Suburban Almanac entry

 Toughness: medium
Speed: fast, then slow (after jump)
Special: jumps over the first plant he runs into
 The dolphin is also a zombie.

## Overview

The Dolphin Rider Zombie absorbs 340 damage per shot and his appearance changes upon absorbing 170 damage per shot before dying at 340 damage per shot. The Dolphin Rider Zombie does not visually degrade while he is riding the dolphin. He loses his dolphin after he jumps over a plant.

## Encounters

* Adventure Mode: 3-8, 3-9, 3-10, 4-4
* Mini-games: Invisi-ghoul, Zombie Nimble Zombie Quick, Last Stand, Buttered Popcorn, Dark Stormy Night
* Puzzle Mode: Last Stand: Pool, Last Stand Endless
* Survival Mode: All Pool and Fog Survival Mode levels (except Survival: Pool)
* Co-op Mode: Co-op Pool, Co-op Hard Pool, Co-op Endless

## Strategies

Before this zombie appears on the screen, a dolphin-like sound can be heard. This will help alert you to set up your defenses if you have not already. The best strategy for dealing with this zombie is to use Tall-nuts to block them, just as one might do for a Pole Vaulting Zombie. If you do not have a Tall-nut available, plant a Lily Pad in front of them to make them lose their dolphins, slowing them down. However, make sure you don't place it in the rightmost square, since the zombie will simply ignore it. If you have it, the Tangle Kelp is the fastest and the most economical way to defeat him, since he will simply run into the plant and as a result, gets dragged into the water.

**Note:** If the player has already planted a Lily Pad or other aquatic plant in the rightmost square, the Dolphin Rider Zombie will not jump over it, as the dolphin enters the pool partway into the second column. The player should plant one in the second or third column from the right, instead.

## Gallery

The DolphinHD Dolphin without a backgroundDolphinZombie.pngAnother DolphinThe zombie jumping in waterDolphin Rider Zombie in the Nintendo DS versionDolphinRider2009HD.pngHD Dolphin Rider ZombieDolphin.pngAnother HD Dolphin Rider ZombieAnimated Dolphin Rider ZombieThe Dolphin's cameo in the "Zombies on your Lawn" videoHypnotized Dolphin Rider ZombieA Dolphin Rider Zombie without his DolphinA Dolphin Rider Zombie that lost his armA Dolphin Rider Zombie dies with his DolphinA dead Dolphin Rider ZombieOnline Almanac entryHis land alternative, Pole Vaulting ZombieDolphin Rider Zombie CardDolphin Rider Zombie plushA Dolphin Rider Zombie jumping over a Lily PadDolphin Rider Zombie in Plants vs. Zombies: Great Wall EditionAlmanac entry in Plants vs. Zombies: Great Wall EditionTwo Dolphin Rider Zombie in the seed selection screen
## Trivia

* He will carry his Dolphin into the Player's House with it if he does not encounter any plants.
* He is the only vaulting zombie that goes in the Pool.
* His sprite is only a fraction of the size of those of other zombies. It is too small to be completely ensnared by a Tangle Kelp.
* The Dolphin cannot eat the player's brains alone, despite claiming to do so in "Zombies on your lawn."
* He does not degrade while on a dolphin (in the pool), like a Bungee Zombie or Snorkel Zombie (when underwater).
* He has a tiny image of a brain on his swimsuit, that is noticeable if one looks close enough.
* He has the shortest Almanac entry of all plants and zombies in *Plants vs. Zombies*, with only six words, second shortest being the Ladder Zombie.
* He is unaffected by all plants when jumping into the water. Instant kills and pool cleaners are an exception
* In the video "Zombies on Your Lawn", his dolphin says, "We are SO the undead" instead of "We are the undead".
* There is a glitch in iOS versions of the game that when he is about to come out of the pool, he does not and instead goes though the ground and he swims in place and never goes in and forces the player to turn off the game and turn it on again.
* On some iOS versions, he will disappear when his head falls off.
* In the Nintendo DS version of the game, the zombie covers the dolphin's eyes.
* His dolphin makes a cameo appearance in a cutscene of *Octogeddon* (an online game from the creators of *Plants vs. Zombies*). In the cutscene, the dolphin somehow won the award for best octopus, this being the reason Octogeddon retaliated against Paris where the awards were held.