MARATHON, FLA. (WSVN) - A pair of dolphins in the Florida Keys showed their team-building skills by working together this holiday season.
Researchers at the Dolphin Research Center in Marathon wanted to see if the marine mammals could be taught how to work together to complete a task. They had them swim side-by-side and race to press a button simultaneously.
Dr. Kelly Jaakkola, the research facility’s director, said the results surpassed their expectations.
“The dolphins didn’t just succeed at this task. They were amazing at it,” said Jaakkola, “so by the end, the difference in time between their button presses was just 370 milliseconds. That’s about a third of a second.”
Some tests had the dolphins released at different times. Researchers said the animals got so good at the task that they would even wait for each other to press the buttons together.
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