Two Dolphins In Sea Royalty-Free Stock Image

Forward motion is created by the whale’s or dolphin’s tail, or flukes, moving up and down in the water. It serves as the propeller. Powerful muscles running along the backbone and sides of the whale’s body move the tail up and down in the water, providing the power that pushes the animal through the water, or deep into the ocean. In fact, one way to remember that whales are not fish is that fish move their bodies sideways when they swim; whales move their bodies up and down.