29 Comments
User's avatar
K.C. Knouse's avatar

Dolphins are great gigglers. Thanks, Mark. After reading this I won't eat dolphin again.:)

Mark Starlin's avatar

I am sure they appreciate it. 🐬

John K Adams's avatar

Who knew?

Jude knows!

John K Adams's avatar

Mark, tell Jude this was an interesting post.

However, conspicuous by their absence, are porpoises! What's up with that?!

Does he have a hidden purpose behind his blatant deep sixing the porpoise lobby?

They get no respect.

Mark Starlin's avatar

Well, a porpoise is actual a whale. It is all quite confusing. That’s why we need Jude.

Chris Cohlmeyer's avatar

I'm old enough to fondly remember Flipper but that mature side... not so much besides being too mature you miss out on pulling off Flipper antics on others.

That banned from the Olympics, that's down right nasty stuff.

Jill CampbellMason's avatar

You are the dolphin translator. I'm so glad you get their idioms!

Rebecca Rhoads's avatar

So rude they aren’t allowed in Olympic swimming. Maybe there should be a division for them.

Mark Starlin's avatar

It's pure speciesism. I think they are afraid sharks will want to compete.

Sharron Bassano's avatar

Wow! Mark! Thank you for improving my education about dolphins. I mean, seriously -- I am heading over to Google right now to see the many kinds of the species. I had no idea! You better not be making that up. ha ha ha. GREAT cartoon, by the way. You have posted a challenge here to fellow substack cartoonist, Terry Freedman ( though he specializes in cats).

Mark Starlin's avatar

Thanks, Sharron. Jude assures that the dolphin facts are all true. We need more doodles on Susbtack!

Sharron Bassano's avatar

What we need on Substack is free churros.

Mark Starlin's avatar

Now you are talking! But I doubt they could build servers fast enough to keep up with all the new Substacks started just to get churros.

David Perlmutter's avatar

"Killer Whales." That should be Orca...

Harry Hogg's avatar

Yes, the Orca is most definitely of the dolphin species. But seen in the wild, toying with a seal before killing it! I don’t know, but Killer Dolphin doesn’t ring right.

Mark Starlin's avatar

Exactly. Dolphins are supposed to be fun and cute. Not killers. No need to spoil the brand. 🤣

Jack Herlocker's avatar

Little known fact: when orca songs were recorded and played back, one of the listeners remarked, “Man! Those are killer wails!” And the names stuck. But not the spelling. (Just ask Jude.)

Mark Starlin's avatar

Ah, so that's how it started! I am surprised Jude didn't share (or know) that. But then, he wasn't a Navy man. 😉 I think his expertise is more focused on land animals.

Mark Starlin's avatar

Yes, that is the other (more scientific) name for them. But Jude wanted to be dramatic so he used the scarier name, Killer Whale.

David Perlmutter's avatar

Still, it's inaccurate because they are more closely related to dolphins than whales.

Mark Starlin's avatar

Agreed. They are dolphins. But they look more like whales than dolphins to the layman, so the name stuck. (According to Jude.)

3musesmerge's avatar

This Flipper aficionado prefers to be described as “mature”. 👵🏻

No wonder I (I mean dolphins) make so many typos?! 🤭

And I find the exclusion from the Olympics appalling.

Mark Starlin's avatar

Yes they are! 🐠

Mark Starlin's avatar

Using "mature" as a synonym for "old" is common enough. I suppose it spares some hard feelings. But not every old person is mature. According to my mirror, anyway. And the occasional young person is mature. I don't mind being called old. I am. I earned it. 🤓

3musesmerge's avatar

I was exercising my humor-us bone! Old and frail as it is… 😂.

Excellent point though about maturity as a trait applying to a wide range on the chronological age spectrum. 🤔

Words are such slippery fish!

Richard Ritenbaugh's avatar

So that's why dolphins always seem to be smiling!

I'm one of those old dudes who gets your reference to Flipper!

Mark Starlin's avatar

Yup. They live in a "world filled with wonder, flying there under, under the sea."

Richard Ritenbaugh's avatar

🤣