This is a fascinating story:

TOKYO, March 2 (Reuters Life!) - A Japanese dolphin is squealing with delight after receiving a prosthetic tail to replace one amputated due to a skin disease.

Fuji's handlers at the Churaumi Aquarium in Japan's southern most island of Okinawa say the fake tail may have saved her life as she had put on dangerous amounts of weight from being inactive after she lost her tail.

"Because she was not exercising enough (after her tail was amputated) she gained weight and from blood samples we took we realized that her cholesterol levels were too high. We then were afraid that this might trigger other diseases so we had to come up with something," handler Masaya Koami said.

I suppose most people think of dolphins (and porpoises and whales) as “fish” but they’re actually mammals, like us. The story seems interesting because it points out the possibility of this new material having other applications, including use in human prosthetics. Could the material be used to create a more lifelike “skin” for a human appliance? It also shows the adaptability of the animal and its ability to quickly adapt to its original lifestyle. (Yes, I understand that life in an aquarium is not “original” but considering the skin disease might have been contracted as a result of captivity, the creation of the tail of the tail is what the Romans called a “good thing” since it restores viability and activity to an ailing creature.

The tail was custom made for Fuji by a friend of the handler who works at Japan's leading tire company Bridgestone. The rubber prosthetic device is slightly smaller than the tail of a dolphin of Fuji's size. It is made of material used for Formula One race car tires and the black silicon rubber was reinforced with artificial bone made of carbon-fiber.

Sponge rubber was used for parts that come directly in contact with Fuji's skin.

Bridgestone said they spent at least 10 million yen (about $83,000) to develop and produce the fin.

It’s been noted that dolphins, porpoises, and whales (Cetaceans) have highly developed brains and are rather intelligent – in fact possibly as smart as humans.

There is no universally agreed definition of "intelligence." However, a commonly used definition is "the ability to reason, plan, solve problems, think abstractly, comprehend complex ideas, learn quickly, and learn from experience." This definition is separate from social traits or the ability to learn tricks (which can be done through conditioning), which many laymen confuse with animal intelligence. Some research shows that dolphins do exceptionally well in this aspect indicating very high intelligence, even surpassing the intelligence level of a chimpanzee, which is generally believed to be the highest amongst animals.[2] Dolphins also seem to have mathematical skills, which is a highly abstract ability.[3]

“[Surpassing the intelligence level of a chimpanzee.” Maybe they are smarter than we are, after all. They're very social animals, and completely cooperative. They don’t do war, except in defense, nor do they overpopulate and stress their environment. They don’t pollute, other than what falls to the ocean floor. It seems like a quite benign existence.