{"id":583770,"date":"2026-08-13T19:40:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-13T19:40:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/583770\/"},"modified":"2026-08-13T19:40:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-13T19:40:11","slug":"scientists-capture-world-first-footage-of-dolphins-using-seashells-to-catch-fish","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/583770\/","title":{"rendered":"Scientists Capture World-First Footage of Dolphins Using Seashells to Catch Fish"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"ADolphin uses a seashell to catch fish in Queensland, Australia | Image by Dr Alexis Levengood via the University of the Sunshine Coast<\/a> <\/p>\n

Researchers have captured the first-ever footage of dolphins using seashells to catch fish, with evidence suggesting that calves may learn the technique from their mothers.<\/p>\n

The extraordinary footage was captured by scientists from the University of the Sunshine Coast in Australia.<\/a> In a new study published in the journal Marine Mammal Science,<\/a> researchers reported two separate sightings of bottlenose dolphins using shells to catch fish. The behavior, known as \u201cshelling,\u201d was recorded in the Great Sandy Marine Park in Queensland, Australia, between July and October 2025<\/p>\n

\u2018I Started Screaming\u2019 <\/p>\n

Researchers observed the dolphins herding fish into large empty shells, then carrying the shells above the water and tipping the fish into their mouths. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were on a research boat off Hervey Bay when we spotted a dolphin raising something large out of the water. I started screaming because I know what shelling looks like,\u201d Dr Alexis Levengood, the study\u2019s lead author, says in a statement. \u201cIt\u2019s a hunting behaviour where dolphins chase fish into large empty shells, bring the shell to the surface and then shake it to drain the fish into their mouths.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were able to record footage and take photographs of dolphins shelling in the Great Sandy Marine Park, which is the first published record of it on the east coast of Australia.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u2018Smart, Clever, and Innovative <\/p>\n

During one sighting, a young dolphin was also seen imitating its mother by using a shell in the same way. The scientists\u2019 findings suggest that dolphins may learn this ingenious technique by watching and copying their mothers.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe saw the mother surface with a shell, the fish inside escaped and the dolphin dropped the shell to chase the fish. Then, minutes afterwards, the dolphin calf picked up the shell and held it the same way as its mother,\u201d Dr Levengood explains. \u201cOur footage provides the first potential evidence of maternal social transmission \u2013 a process by which offspring learn behaviour by observing the actions of its mother. It challenges the belief that dolphins learn this tool use from their peers.\u201d <\/p>\n

She adds: \u201cThese findings highlight how smart, clever and innovative dolphins are.\u201d <\/p>\n

Scientists say shelling had previously only been reported in Western Australia, about 3,700 miles away. But after speaking with local tour guides, the researchers discovered older photos showing dolphins in the area using shells as far back as 2019. This suggests the behavior has been taking place there for years without being formally documented. Dr. Levengood says more research is needed to better understand how dolphins learn the technique and how it may relate to their environment, intelligence, social behavior, and evolution.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s still a lot we don\u2019t know and many questions we will hopefully ask and answer with time,\u201d Dr Levengood says. \u201cBut better understanding shelling, and other tool use in non-human animals, will continue to teach us more about ourselves and how and why we evolved the way we did.\u201d <\/p>\n

Affiliate Disclosure PetaPixel articles may include affiliate links; we may earn a commission if you buy through one. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Dolphin uses a seashell to catch fish in Queensland, Australia | Image by Dr Alexis Levengood via the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":583771,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[85,46,141,386],"class_list":["post-583770","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wildlife","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-science","tag-wildlife"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583770","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=583770"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583770\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/583771"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=583770"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=583770"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=583770"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}