Striped Dolphin - Stenella coeruleoalba

Striped Dolphin
Stenella coeruleoalba

Other Names: Euphrosyne Dolphin, Whitebelly, Blue-white Dolphin, Meyen's Dolphin, Gray's Dolphin, Streaker Porpoise

Habitat: Offshore and occasionally inshore

Status: Common

Population: Unknown

Threats: Hunting/whaling and entanglement in fishing nets

Group Size: 10-500

Fin Position: Center

Newborns: c.1 m (39 in), Unknown weight

Adults: 6-8 Ľ ft (1.8-2.5 m), 200-300 lb. (90-150 kg)

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

Teeth: 78-106 on top row, 78-110 on bottom row

Description

Dorsal fin:

- dark, strongly falcate dorsal fin
- some fins exceptionally tall in relation to body size
- trailing edges may be highly concave

Flukes:

- small, pale gray flukes
- slight notch in middle
- concave trailing edges
- pointed tips

Flippers:

- small, slender flippers
- pointed tips
- dark flippers located within the white body area

Other characteristics:

- distinct crease separating forehead and beak
- smoothly sloping forehead
- slender head
- black patch around each eye (variable)
- thin dark streak behind eye
- pale gray finger-shaped marking below dorsal fin (variable)
- bluish gray or brownish upper side
- narrow, pale gray tail stock (variable)
- thin, dark stripe running from underside of tail stock to eye (variable)
- white or pink underside
- 1 or 2 dark bands between eye and flipper
-dark, prominent beak

Behavior

- active and highly conspicuous
- frequently breaches, sometimes as high as 23 ft 97 m); capable of amazing acrobatics, including back somersaults, tail-spins, and upside down porpoising
- when swimming at speed, up to one-third of all members of a school will be above the surface at any one time
- dives typically last 5 to 10 minutes
- when feeding, dives to at least 655 ft (200 m) deep
- will bow-ride in some areas (mainly the Atlantic and Mediterranean) but rarely approaches vessels in other areas
- smaller groups (under 100) tend to occur in the Atlantic and Mediterranean
- often associates with Common Dolphins and, in the eastern tropical Pacific, with Yellowfin Tuna
- several mass strandings have occurred in recent years

Distribution

- warm temperate, subtropical, and tropical waters around the world
- wide distribution, though it does not appear to be continuous: there are gaps and low densities in some areas, suggesting several geographically isolated (or semi-isolated) populations
- distinctive seasonal migration recorded off the coast of Japan, where it has been well studied: appears to winter in the East China Sea and summer in the pelagic North Pacific
- migrations are unknown in other parts of the world, though it may move seasonally with warm oceanic currents in some areas
- primarily occurs offshore and, when found close to land, usually in deep water

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