Animals
The Navy identifies the following animal species as having been used or studied by the program at various times:
Cetaceans:
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Pinnipeds:
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Other:
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Bottlenose Dolphins and California Sea Lions are the main animals used, and are kept at the base in San Diego. Dolphins have powerful biological sonar, unmatched by artificial sonar technology in detecting objects in the water column and on the sea floor. Sea lions lack this, but have very sensitive underwater directional hearing and exceptional vision in low-light conditions. Both of these species are trainable and capable of repetitive deep diving. As of the late 1990s, about 140 marine mammals were part of the program.
Read more about this topic: U.S. Navy Marine Mammal Program
Famous quotes containing the word animals:
“Chinese civilisation is so systematic that wild animals have been abolished on principle.”
—Aleister Crowley (1875–1947)
“Feet are considered a delicacy among certain animals, you know.... In fact, there are certain man-eating animals who will eat only the feet, leave everything else, will not touch one other thing.”
—Blake Edwards (b. 1922)
“The moles nested in my cellar, nibbling every third potato, and making a snug bed even there of some hair left after plastering and of brown paper; for even the wildest animals love comfort and warmth as well as man, and they survive the winter only because they are so careful to secure them.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)