(UPI) A group of researchers in Maryland constructed a giant, underwater touchscreen for dolphins to interact with.

Footage from the M2C2 Research Collaborative, shared to YouTube by user Silvia Spanciu, shows a dolphin using the touch screen to play a game of Whack-a-Mole by tapping images of fish that float across the screen.

Researchers from Rockefeller University, Hunter College and the National Aquarium in Baltimore worked together to create the 8-foot touch screen to investigate dolphin intelligence and communication by providing them choice and control over a number of activities.

The screen features "dolphin-friendly apps" to allow the dolphins to interact with the system which detects the dolphins' movements optically.

"It was surprisingly difficult to find an elegant solution that was absolutely safe for the dolphins, but it has been incredibly rewarding to work with these amazing creatures and see their reactions to our system," biophysicist Marcelo Magnasco said. It has always been hard to keep up with dolphins, they are so smart; a fully interactive and programmable system will help us follow them in any direction they take us.

In addition to the touchscreen, the habitat is outfitted with equipment to record the behavior and vocalization of the dolphin as they interact with the technology.

"We hope this technologically-sophisticated touchscreen will be enriching for the dolphins and also enrich our science by opening a window into the dolphin mind," Rockefeller University professor Diana Reiss said. Giving dolphins increased choice and control allows them to show us reflections of their way of thinking and may help us decode their vocal communication.

Copyright 2017 by United Press International