Fraser's Dolphin - Lagenodelphis hosei

Fraser's Dolphin
Lagenodelphis hosei

Other Names: Sarawak Dolphin, Shortsnout Dolphin, Bornean Dolphin, White-belied Dolphin, Fraser's Porpoise

Habitat: Offshore

Status: Locally common

Population: Unknown

Threats: Entanglement in fishing nets, hunting/whaling

Group Size: 100-500, often in the company of other species

Fin Position: Center

Newborns: c.39 in (1m), c.40 lb. (19 kg)

Adults: 6 ½ - 8 ½ ft (202.6 m), c.350-460 lb. (160-210 kg

Diet: Fish, squid or octopus, krill or other crustaceans

Teeth: 72-88 on top row, 68-88 on bottom

Description

Dorsal fin:

- small in relation to body size
- height of fin varies greatly
- pointed tip
- fin may be triangular
- small at base
- some fins are hooked

Flukes:

- flukes small in relations to body size
- concave trailing edges
- small notch in middle

Flippers:

- dark on both sides
- very small, pointed flippers

Other characteristics:

- short but well-defined beak
- complex face markings
- blue-gray or gray-brown upper side
- body less robust behind dorsal fin
- dark gray to black lateral stripe (variable width and intensity)
- creamy white or pinkish white belly and throat
- gray or creamy line bordering upper side of dark stripe
- dark line (or lines) from beak to flippers
- upper jaw and tip of lower jaw dark

Behavior

- deep diver, hunting at depths of at least 820-1,640 ft (250-500 m)
- often seen in mixed schools with other pelagic cetaceans, especially Melon-headed, False Killer, and Sperm Whales, and Pantropical Spotted and Striped Dolphins
- has an aggressive swimming style: when rising to breathe, often leaves water in a burst of spray
- known to breach, though not usually demonstrative or playful
- in most parts of range is shy of boats and will normally swim away rapidly, forming a tight group with others, with lots of surface splashing
- more inclined to bow-ride and swim alongside vessels in the Philippines and off Natal coast, South Africa

Distribution

- deep tropical and warm temperate waters of the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian oceans
- distribution poorly known
- appears to be most common near equator in the eastern tropical Pacific and at southern end of Bohol Strait, the Philippines
- seems to be relatively scarce in the Atlantic Ocean (known only form the Lesser Antilles and the Gulf of Mexico)
- may range across the Indian Ocean, though confirmed sighting only from the east coast of South Africa, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia
- also occurs away from equator as far north as Taiwan and Japan and, in small numbers, off Australia
- rarely seen in inshore waters, except around oceanic islands and in areas with a narrow continental shelf

e-mail questions, comments, and/or suggestions to
wcrc@sci.tamucc.edu

Internet Coordinator: Candice Orca Mottet

e-mail questions, comments, and/or suggestions to wcrc@sci.tamucc.edu

e-mail questions, comments, and/or suggestions to
wcrc@sci.tamucc.edu