Pantropical Spotted Dolphin

Stenella attenuata

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Cetartiodactyla
Family: Delphinidae
Genus: Stenella
Species: Stenella attenuata

The pantropical spotted dolphin (Stenella attenuata) is a fast, slender dolphin with a long, white-tipped beak. Calves are born unspotted, and pale and dark speckles gradually accumulate as the animal ages, so older adults can look heavily mottled.

It reaches about 2.4 m and lives in active, often large groups that sometimes mix with spinner dolphins. Its diet is mainly small fish and squid taken near the surface or in the upper water column, with much of the feeding done at night.

In the Philippines this species is common over deep water in the Bohol Sea, Sulu Sea and other offshore basins, and is often seen bow-riding during boat transfers. Most encounters are from the surface rather than on dives.

Photo: Omar Haroon, CC0 1.0, via iNaturalist