Bottlenose Dolphin

Tursiops truncatus

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered

KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
PhylumChordata (Chordates)
ClassMammalia (Mammals)
OrderCetacea
FamilyDelphinidae (Oceanic Dolphins)
GenusTursiops (Bottlenose Dolphins)
SpeciesTursiops truncatus (Bottlenose Dolphin)

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

at Cape Range

1 Verified sightings at Cape Range From 2019 to 2026

1,107 Verified sightings across all 40 parks From 2019 to 2026

☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Bottlenose Dolphin

The common bottlenose dolphin or Atlantic bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) is one of three species of bottlenose dolphin in the genus Tursiops. While formerly known simply as the bottlenose dolphin, this term is now applied to the genus Tursiops as a whole. As considerable genetic variation has been described within this species, even between neighboring populations, many experts think additional species may be recognized and split out.

The common bottlenose dolphin is a very familiar dolphin due to the wide exposure it receives in captivity in marine parks and dolphinariums, and in movies and television programs. Common bottlenose dolphins inhabit temperate and tropical oceans throughout the world, absent only from polar waters.

Common bottlenose dolphins have a grey coloration, a short beak, a single blowhole, and a hooked dorsal fin. The bottlenose is between 2 and 4 m (6.6 and 13.1 ft) long, and weighs between 150 and 650 kg (330 and 1,430 lb). Males are generally larger and heavier than females. In most parts of the world, adult length is between 2.5 and 3.5 m (8.2 and 11.5 ft); weight ranges between 200 and 500 kg (440 and 1,100 lb). Like the other bottlenose... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Cape Range

Sousa sahulensis

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Orcinus orca

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Stenella longirostris

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Megaptera novaeangliae

Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible

Balaenoptera acutorostrata

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Global Distribution

Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.

where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there

Parks Where Found

#	Park	Country	Daily sighting probability
1	Bahía de Loreto National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	~40%
2	Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	~40%
3	Bastimentos Island National Marine Park	🇵🇦 Panama	~40%
4	Fiordland National Park	🇳🇿 New Zealand	~40%
5	Paracas National Reserve	🇵🇪 Peru	~30%
6	Piedras Blancas National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~30%
7	El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	~30%
8	Channel Islands National Park	🇺🇸 United States	~20%
9	Galápagos Islands	🇪🇨 Ecuador	~20%
10	Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	~20%
11	Big Cypress National Preserve	🇺🇸 United States	~20%
12	Everglades National Park	🇺🇸 United States	~10%
13	La Amistad International Park (Panama)	🇵🇦 Panama	~10%
14	Namib-Naukluft National Park	🇳🇦 Namibia	~10%
15	Abel Tasman National Park	🇳🇿 New Zealand	~10%
16	Tortuguero National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
17	Marino Ballena National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
18	Garden Route National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	<5%
19	Table Mountain National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	<5%
20	Isla del Coco National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
21	Coiba National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	Insufficient data
22	Cabo Pulmo National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
23	Península Valdés	🇦🇷 Argentina	Insufficient data
24	Los Haitises National Park	🇩🇴 Dominican Republic	Insufficient data
25	Celestún Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
26	Rakiura National Park	🇳🇿 New Zealand	Insufficient data
27	Freycinet National Park	🇦🇺 Australia	Insufficient data
28	Maria Island National Park	🇦🇺 Australia	Insufficient data
29	Machalilla National Park	🇪🇨 Ecuador	Insufficient data
30	Las Baulas Marine National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
31	Ningaloo Marine Park	🇦🇺 Australia	Insufficient data
32	Cape Range	🇦🇺 Australia	Insufficient data
33	Corcovado National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
34	Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
35	Snowdonia National Park	🇬🇧 United Kingdom	Insufficient data
36	Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
37	Wilsons Promontory National Park	🇦🇺 Australia	Insufficient data
38	Manuel Antonio National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
39	Royal National Park	🇦🇺 Australia	Insufficient data
40	Great Otway National Park	🇦🇺 Australia	Insufficient data

← Back to Cape Range

Bottlenose Dolphin

About the Bottlenose Dolphin

Closest Relatives at Cape Range

Australian Humpback Dolphin

Killer Whale

Long-snouted Spinner Dolphin

Humpback Whale

Minke Whale

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found