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Spinner Dolphin
Author: LAwebTek
Classified Stenella longirostris in 1828 - the specific name referring to this species' long snout. This species is found in tropical and subtropical waters worldwide. There are no subspecies, but there are four distinct Eastern Pacific forms: the Eastern, the Whitebelly, the Costa Rican and the Hawaiian.
The Spinner Dolphin is a slender creature with a long, thin beak to which the distinct forehead slopes gently. The dorsal varies with both age and geographical form; it can lean forward, be curved, or be completely triangular in shape. The flippers are long and pointed, and a stripe links them to the eyes. Eastern Pacific and Costa Rican animals are mainly grey, with other forms usually two- or three-tone. Both the Hawaiian and Whitebelly forms have a dark grey or black dorsal cape, paler flanks and sides, and a creamy-white belly. All forms measure between 1.3 and 2.1m in length, and weigh between 45-75kg.
Units range from a few animals to a few thousand, often mixing with other cetacean species such as Pilot Whales and Spotted Dolphins. They are dramatically acrobatic, with somersaults, high spinning leaps and other aerial movements popular. They vocalise with whistles and clicks, and can travel as fast as 20kph. Spinner Dolphins inhabit both offshore and inshore waters and feed on midwater fish and squid. They are different from other dolphins in that they feeds at night.
Spinner Dolphins are often targeted in the purse-seine and yellowfin tuna fisheries of the eastern Pacific Ocean. Elsewhere, many of these dolphins are accidentally killed in gillnets, and also taken in harpoon fisheries. Some individuals have been kept successfully in captivity for at least 10 years.
2003 LAwebTek
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