Common Dolphin
The Common Dolphin is a medium sized dolphin, smaller than the Bottle-nosed Dolphin. The colour pattern on the body is unusual. The back is dark and the belly is white, while on each side is an hourglass pattern colored light grey, yellow or gold in front and dirty grey in back.
The Common Dolphin is widely distributed in temperate, sub-tropical and tropical waters throughout the world in a band roughly spanning 40 degrees south to 50 degrees north. Deep off-shore waters and to a lesser extent over continental shelves are preferred to shallow waters. Some populations may be present all year round whilst others appear to move in a migratory pattern. The total world population is unknown but numbers in the hundreds of thousands.
Common Dolphins travel in groups of around 10 to 50 in number and frequently gather into schools numbering 100 to 2000 individuals. These schools are generally very active with groups often surfacing, jumping and splashing together. Typical behaviour includes breaching, tail-slapping, chin-slapping, bow-riding and porpoising. Common Dolphins are among the fastest swimming cetaceans,
Date: 12th September 2008
Location: photo taken from Portsmouth to Bilbao P&O ferry
The Common Dolphin is widely distributed in temperate, sub-tropical and tropical waters throughout the world in a band roughly spanning 40 degrees south to 50 degrees north. Deep off-shore waters and to a lesser extent over continental shelves are preferred to shallow waters. Some populations may be present all year round whilst others appear to move in a migratory pattern. The total world population is unknown but numbers in the hundreds of thousands.
Common Dolphins travel in groups of around 10 to 50 in number and frequently gather into schools numbering 100 to 2000 individuals. These schools are generally very active with groups often surfacing, jumping and splashing together. Typical behaviour includes breaching, tail-slapping, chin-slapping, bow-riding and porpoising. Common Dolphins are among the fastest swimming cetaceans,
Date: 12th September 2008
Location: photo taken from Portsmouth to Bilbao P&O ferry
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Also in: Whales and dolphins
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