Spatial movement patterns and behaviour of two captive bottlenose dolphins ( Tursiops truncatus): absence of stereotyped behaviour or lack of definition?

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To assess stereotyped behaviour patterns in two captive bottlenose dolphins ( Tursiops truncatus), three strategies were proposed: observations of single repeated behavioural elements, of spatial movement and of change in behaviour in advance of feeding time. Weak evidence was found indicating that the two dolphins showed stereotyped behaviour patterns, especially in expectation of the training/feeding session. The paper is an attempt to provide a basis of discussion on keeping cetacea and as a starting point for future work.