The character of Dolphin was inspired by the false killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens), one of the largest members of the dolphin family. The false killer whale takes its name from the shape of its skull, which is similar to that of an orca. Despite the name, they look different. False killer whales are dark gray, without the orca’s dramatic black-and-white pattern. While false killer whales are among the largest of the dolphin species, they are smaller than killer whales. False killer whales have measured up to 20 feet in length, while killer whales reach up to 27 feet in length. In both species, males are bigger than females.
False killer whales are social animals. They travel in groups of five to twenty-five individuals that stay together for years, forming bonds that outlast any single reproductive relationship. Dolphin mothers care not only for their own young but for the calves of others in their group. Cooperative mothering and feeding are defining traits of dolphins. Calves can nurse for up to two years.
False killer whales are apex predators that feed on large pelagic fish like mahimahi and tuna. This diet puts them in direct competition with commercial and recreational fishermen. False killer whales are known to take fish directly from fishing lines, and as a result, they are sometimes killed as bycatch or deliberately, in retaliation.
The species lives a long time, around 60 years. Combined with the fact that they reproduce slowly and can be caught as fishing bycatch, the main Hawaiian Islands population of false killer whales is listed as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. Globally, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classifies the species as near threatened.
The female false killer whale was chosen for the character of Dolphin because she is a Pacific Hawaiian animal, a mother, and a creature who forms deep bonds with her group. In Drowned Mermaid, Dolphin becomes a guide and her family a surrogate for Morgan. Like Morgan used to be in her human state, Dolphin is a mammal, and that shared biology becomes an unspoken connection. When Morgan encounters Dolphin, she encounters something both foreign and familiar.
