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Spinner Dolphin

Mammal · Least Concern

Spinner Dolphin

Stenella longirostris

About

Acrobatic dolphin famous for resting in the lagoons of Sha'ab Samadai (Dolphin House) and Sataya.

Family
Delphinidae
Avg size
130-200 cm
Habitat
The spinner dolphin occurs in nearly all tropical and subtropical waters between 40 degrees north and 40 degrees south. It mainly keeps to coastal waters, islands, and banks, though in the eastern tropical Pacific it lives well offshore, and it may shift between habitats with the season. Its diet centres on small mesopelagic fish, squid, and sergestid shrimp, for which it dives 200 to 300 m; Hawaiian spinner dolphins feed at night in the deep scattering layers, while the dwarf form feeds mostly on bottom-dwelling fish in reefs and shallow water.
Behaviour
Because it forages at night, in places such as Hawaii and northern Brazil the spinner dolphin spends the day resting in shallow bays near deep water. The group rests as one, drifting slowly back and forth in a tight formation while staying just out of contact with one another, for roughly four to five hours a day, relying on vision rather than echolocation during these periods. At dusk they head offshore to feed, travelling along the shore on foraging trips, and the individuals sharing a given bay may differ from one day to the next.

Where & when

Where & When to See It

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