Editing Cetacean intelligence (section)

===Pod characteristics===
[[File:Bottlenose dolphins and false killer whales.gif|thumb|300px|Interspecies pod of bottlenose dolphins and [[false killer whale]]s]]
Dolphin group sizes vary quite dramatically. [[River dolphin]]s usually congregate in fairly small groups from 6 to 12 in number or, in some species, singly or in pairs. The individuals in these small groups know and recognize one another. Other species such as the oceanic [[pantropical spotted dolphin]], [[common dolphin]] and [[spinner dolphin]] travel in large groups of hundreds of individuals. It is unknown whether every member of the group is acquainted with every other. However, large packs can act as a single cohesive unit{{spaced ndash}}observations show that if an unexpected disturbance, such as a shark approach, occurs from the flank or from beneath the group, the group moves in near-unison to avoid the threat. This means that the dolphins must be aware not only of their near neighbors but also of other individuals nearby{{spaced ndash}} in a similar manner to which humans perform "[[audience wave]]s". This is achieved by sight, and possibly also echolocation. One hypothesis proposed by Jerison (1986) is that members of a pod of dolphins are able to share echolocation results with each other to create a better understanding of their surroundings.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Do Dolphins Eavesdrop on the Echolocation Signals of Conspecifics? |url=http://escholarship.org/uc/item/20s5h7h9.pdf |website=eScholarship}}</ref>

Southern resident orcas in British Columbia, Canada, and Washington, United States, live in extended family groups. The basis of the [[Southern resident orcas#Society|southern resident orca social structure]] is the matriline, consisting of a matriarch and her descendants of all generations. A number of matrilines form a southern resident orca pod, which is ongoing and extremely stable in membership, and has its own [[Southern resident orcas#Dialect|dialect]] which is stable over time. A southern resident calf is born into the pod of their mother and remains in it for life.<ref name="FEB 24–25">{{cite book |last1=Ford |first1=John K.B. |last2=Ellis |first2=Graeme M. |last3=Balcomb |first3=Kenneth C. |title=Killer Whales: the natural history and genealogy of ''Orcinus orca'' in British Columbia and Washington |date=2000 |publisher=[[UBC]] Press |location=Vancouver, BC |isbn=9780774808002 |edition=2nd |pages=24–25}}</ref>
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|image1=J50-orca-family h.jpg
|caption1=Members of a southern resident orca family unit travelling in formation with the mother and youngest offspring in the centre
|image2=A pod of spinner dolphins in the Red Sea.jpg
|caption2=Pod of [[spinner dolphin]]s

}}
A cetacean dialect is a socially–determined vocal tradition. The complex vocal communication systems of orcas correspond with their large brains and complex social structure.<ref name="Marino 2007">{{cite journal |author1=Marino L |author2=Connor RC |author3=Fordyce RE |author4=Herman LM |author5=Hof PR |author6=Lefebvre L |title=Cetaceans Have Complex Brains for Complex Cognition |journal=[[PLoS Biol]] |date=2007 |volume=5 |issue=5 |page=e139 |doi=10.1371/journal.pbio.0050139 |pmid=17503965 |pmc=1868071 |display-authors=et al |doi-access=free }}</ref> The three southern resident orca pods share some calls with one another, and also have unique calls.<ref name="FEB 21">{{cite book |last1=Ford |first1=John K.B. |last2=Ellis |first2=Graeme M. |last3=Balcomb |first3=Kenneth C. |title=Killer Whales: the natural history and genealogy of ''Orcinus orca'' in British Columbia and Washington |date=2000 |publisher=[[UBC]] Press |location=Vancouver, BC |isbn=9780774808002 |edition=2nd |page=21}}</ref> Discussing the function of resident orca dialects, researchers John Ford, Graeme Ellis and Ken Balcomb wrote, "It may well be that dialects are used by the whales as acoustic indicators of group identity and membership, which might serve to preserve the integrity and cohesiveness of the social unit."<ref name="FEB 21"/> Resident orcas form closed societies with no emigration or dispersal of individuals, and no gene flow with other orca populations.<ref name="CWR Research">{{cite web |title=Research |url=https://www.whaleresearch.com/orcasurvey |publisher=Center for Whale Research |access-date=17 December 2023}}</ref> There is evidence that other species of dolphins may also have dialects.<ref name="Welsh" /><ref name="ethogram" />

In [[bottlenose dolphin]] studies by Wells in [[Sarasota]], [[Florida]], and Smolker in [[Shark Bay]], [[Australia]], females of a community are all linked either directly or through a mutual association in an overall social structure known as ''fission-fusion''. Groups of the strongest association are known as "bands", and their composition can remain stable over years. There is some genetic evidence that band members may be related, but these bands are not necessarily limited to a single matrilineal line. There is no evidence that bands compete with each other. In the same research areas, as well as in [[Moray Firth]], [[Scotland]], males form strong associations of two to three individuals, with a coefficient of association between 70 and 100. These groups of males are known as "alliances", and members often display synchronous behaviors such as respiration, jumping, and breaching. Alliance composition is stable on the order of tens of years, and may provide a benefit for the acquisition of females for mating.
The complex social strategies of marine mammals such as bottlenose dolphins, "provide interesting parallels" with the social strategies of elephants and chimpanzees.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Acevedo-Gutiérrez |first1=Alejandro |title=Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals |last2=William F. Perrin |last3=Bernd G. Würsig |last4=J. G. M. Thewissen |publisher=Academic Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-12-373553-9 |edition=2 |location=United States |pages=511–520 |chapter=Group behavior}}</ref>{{rp|page=519}}