Scientists currently determine a dolphin’s age by pulling out a tooth, sawing it in half, and counting the growth layers. This process is uncomfortable for dolphins and expensive for scientists. FIU’s Jose Eirin-Lopez has created a new genetic tool to determine a dolphin’s age.
Paragraph 2: Eirin-Lopez designed the Bottlenose Dolphin Epigenetic Age Estimation Tool, which can determine a dolphin’s age through a small skin sample. Knowing the ages of dolphins is a critical part of understanding the overall health of a population. “A more even distribution of different ages means the population will be more effective,” says Eirin-Lopez.
View Related Expert Profiles: Go to Source
