Which dolphin population uses sponges as tools to protect their snouts?

The dolphin population known for using sponges as tools is the bottlenose dolphin population of Shark Bay, Western Australia. These dolphins place a marine sponge over the rostrum—the projecting snout—to protect it while probing sandy seafloors for fish.

The behavior, known as sponging, is a specialized foraging technique. The dolphins often target bottom-dwelling fish that lack swim bladders and may be difficult to detect with ordinary echolocation. The sponge helps them investigate the sediment without scraping or injuring their snouts.

Sponging was first reported in 1997 and has been observed only in Shark Bay. It is practiced predominantly by females, and research indicates that mothers pass the technique to their offspring. Because the behavior is learned socially rather than simply inherited, scientists describe it as an example of animal culture.

The more precise identification is Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins, often recorded as Tursiops sp. in Shark Bay. The stored answer remains fair because these animals are bottlenose dolphins, not spinner dolphins, orcas, or humpback dolphins.