Mermaid With Dolphin Coloring Page

This mermaid with dolphin coloring page shows a laughing young mermaid resting one hand on a happy dolphin as they swim up toward the surface together. Her other hand waves in the air. She has long wavy hair, a small shell clip and a tail covered in scales. Bubbles drift around them, and kelp, coral and a starfish sit on the sandy floor.

Two characters give kids a little story to enjoy while they work. The page is best for ages 4 to 10, and a careful colorist will spend about 30 minutes on it.

A page for animal lovers

Plenty of children who skip fairy tales still adore dolphins, and this drawing gives them a reason to join in. The dolphin has a big smooth body that is quick to fill, while the tail scales offer more of a test for older kids.

It suits an ocean lesson or a rainy afternoon. Friends can color it side by side and compare how different their two seas turn out.

Choosing a sea palette

Real dolphins are gray on top and pale underneath, so a soft gray or blue gray looks true to life. Leave the belly white or very light. For a fantasy look, a bright blue dolphin works fine.

Give the mermaid a tail that stands out from the water. Purple, coral pink and warm orange all pop against a pale blue sea. The coral can be orange or pink, and the seaweed can be two different greens.

Coloring water and skin

• Color the sea last, so you can work around the bubbles.
• Use small circles of crayon for a soft water look.
• Press lightly on the dolphin, then add a darker band along its back.
• Choose a hair color first, then pick a tail that goes with it.

Mermaid with dolphin coloring page facts

Dolphins are mammals, not fish, so they must come to the surface to breathe air through a blowhole on top of their heads. They never fully switch off, either. A dolphin rests one half of its brain at a time, which lets it keep swimming and watching for danger. Wikipedia has more about the bottlenose dolphin.

These animals are also very social. They live in groups called pods, and they use clicks and whistles to talk with each other. Scientists have found that a bottlenose dolphin develops its own special whistle, which works a little like a name. Think of how fun it would be to have a name that nobody could spell.

Dolphins can use sound to find food too. They send out clicks, then listen for the echo that bounces back from a fish. Bats use a very similar trick in the dark.

Ideas for class or home

Ask your child what the mermaid and dolphin are saying to each other. Add a speech bubble above each one. Perhaps the dolphin knows where a lost treasure lies, and the mermaid wants to go along.

Science time can start with a simple question: is it a fish or a mammal? List the clues together. Does it breathe air? Does it feed milk to its babies? Then try the same questions with a shark and a whale.

Kids can also act out the echo trick. One child hides their eyes and claps, and a partner claps back from across the room. Can they point to where the sound came from?

Bigger kids might like a small research job. Pick one type of dolphin, find out how long it grows and where it lives, then write three facts on the back of the page.

Find more friends under the waves

You will find more ocean drawings in our mermaid coloring pages. The seashell coloring page is a good calm choice for after this one, and our animal coloring pages cover creatures from every corner of the planet. This mermaid with dolphin coloring page is free to print, so make one for each friend.

Questions