Dolphin Rider Zombie

Dolphin Rider Zombies are essentially aquatic Pole Vaulting Zombies, except that they move faster while they are riding their dolphin and can do more damage to the player's plants if you do not protect them. This makes them much more dangerous than Pole Vaulting Zombie. He is the 15th Zombie you will encounter in Adventure Mode (14th if you have not encountered the Zombie bobsled team).

Overview
Absorbs 17 Normal Damage shots. Appearance changes upon absorption of 9 Normal Damage shots.

Suburban Almanac Entry
 Dolphin Rider Zombie 

Dolphin Rider Zombies use dolphins to exploit weaknesses in your pool defense.

Toughness: medium

Speed: fast, then slow (after jump)

Special: jumps over the first plant he runs into

Only appears in the pool

The dolphin is also a zombie.

Strategy


Before this zombie appears on the screen, a dolphin-like sound can be heard. This will help alert you to set up defenses if you haven't already. The best strategy for dealing with this zombie is to use Tall-nuts to block them, just as you might do for a Pole Vaulting Zombie. If you don't have a Tall-nut available, plant a Lily Pad in front of them to make them lose their dolphin, slowing them down. If you can use it, however, the Tangle Kelp is an easy way to kill them without spending a lot of sun.

Note: If you had already planted a Lily Pad in the first square, the Dolphin Rider Zombie will not jump it, as the dolphin enters the water partway into the second column. You should plant one in the second or third column instead.

Trivia

 * The Dolphin Rider Zombie is the only zombie with an animal mount.
 * In fact, it is the only zombie with any sort of animal, except a prototype zombie not included in the game that walked a zombie dog (the dog was too small to be hit by peas, so it was essentially invulnerable. If he dies, his dog will start going crazy).
 * The Dolphin Rider Zombie will carry its dolphin into your house with it if it hasn't encountered any plants when it reaches the other end of the pool.
 * The Dolphin Rider Zombie's sprite is only 2/3 the size of those of other zombies.
 * This makes the Dolphin Rider Zombie too small to be completely tangled by a Tangle Kelp as when a Tangle Kelp tangles a Dolphin Rider Zombie when it has jumped, you can still see some space above the zombie.
 * In addition to the Tall-nut, Dolphin Rider Zombies cannot jump over the Tangle Kelp, as it instantly tangles the zombie while it is still riding the dolphin, drowning it immediately.
 * This Zombie is the fastest zombie in the whole game, but only while it has its dolphin.
 * In some cases, glitches can let Dolphin Rider Zombies jump over Tall-nuts.
 * The Dolphin Rider Zombie will ignore the Tall-nut if it has been planted in the first column.
 * This is because the Dolphin is thrown into the pool in the second column.
 * This Zombie has been somehow known to jump over Pool Cleaners when they jump at the first square nearest to your house and another Zombie has activated it while it is jumping.
 * If the Dolphin Rider Zombie is killed normally while on his dolphin, it will just disappear with his dolphin.
 * The Dolphin Rider Zombie will just slow down if you use an Ice-shroom while it is still on his dolphin. This also happens with the Pogo Zombie (with its pogo stick), Balloon Zombie (with its balloon) and Zomboni (he can't be frozen).
 * But however, sometimes it will be frozen by the Ice-shroom when he is on his dolphin.
 * The Dolphin appears in the credits song.
 * It is also the only one said: "We are SO the undead!"
 * The Dolphin Rider Zombie, the Flag Zombie, the Snorkel Zombie, the Ducky Tube Zombie, the Zombie Bobsled Team, Balloon Zombie, Digger Zombie, Dancing Zombie, Backup Dancer and the Zombie Yeti are the only zombies that don't appear during the original battle with Dr. Zomboss.
 * Because Versus Mode does not include the pool, the Dolphin Rider Zombie, along with the Ducky Tube Zombie and the Snorkel Zombie, cannot be used. The six other zombies not available for use are the Backup Dancer, the Zombie Bobsled Team, the Balloon Zombie, the Zombie Yeti, the Imp, and Dr. Zomboss.
 * The Dolphin Rider Zombie, the Zombie Bobsled Team, the Dancing Zombie, the Snorkel Zombie and Dr. Zomboss are the zombies that don't have single lacerations on their clothes.
 * It is nearly impossible to kill him before he enters the pool.
 * If the Dolphin Rider Zombie is dead while it has his dolphin they will disappear in the pool.
 * He does not degrade when on his dolphin.
 * But when he loses his dolphin after taking some damage his arm will instantly fall off.
 * When you kill him with an explosive when he is entering the pool, he will disappear.
 * The Dolphin Rider Zombie has the shortest almanac entry, "The dolphin is a zombie too." The shortest entry for a plant is Flower Pot's entry. The second shortest Almanac Entry for zombie is Ladder Zombie.
 * The Dolphin Rider Zombie is the only zombie capable of jumping over a projectile (while jumping), being able to jump over peas. Also, peas can miss a Pole Vaulting Zombie in the air sometimes, especially when it's frozen.
 * Maybe the Tangle Kelp really is invisible to them as stated in the almanac.
 * Some players consider this a very annoying zombie.
 * It is one of the 3 Zombies that can be stopped by a Tall-nut, the other are the Pole Vaulting Zombie and the Pogo Zombie.