Meet the Dolphins of Pemuteran Bay

A closer look at the wild dolphins that call Pemuteran home

Dolphins are intelligent, social marine mammals known for their playful behavior and complex communication skills. They belong to the cetacean family, which also includes whales and porpoises. While most dolphins live in oceans, some species inhabit rivers. They use echolocation to navigate and hunt, and they often live in groups called pods. Dolphins are considered among the smartest animals on Earth. There are around 40 different dolphin species. To differentiate them, scientists focus on a combination of physical characteristics such as size, body shape, coloration, beak length, and the shape of the dorsal f in. Behavioral traits—like social interactions and acrobatic displays— along with geographical distribution, also help in identifying different.

Types of Oceanic Dolphins

Dolphins Commonly Found in Pemuteran

Common Bottlenose dolphin

Scientific Name: Tursiops truncatus Family: Delphinidae Length: Between 2 to 4 meters (6.6 to 13.1 feet) Weight: Between 150 to 650 kg (330 to 1430 lbs) Where found: Widely distributed around the world in both offshore and coastal areas, including harbors, bays, gulfs, and estuaries of temperate and tropical waters. The common bottlenose dolphin is one of the most well-known dolphin species due to its use in aquarium shows and movies. The species is known both for its intelligence and its acrobatic behavior. The common bottlenose dolphin is grey in color, with a lighter underside. It has a varied diet that includes fish and squid.

Spinner dolphin

Scientific Name: Stenella longirostris Family: Delphinidae Length: 1.2 to 2.3 meters (3.9 to 7.5 feet)Weight: 55 to 75 kg (121 to 165 lbs) Where found: Tropical oceans worldwide Spinner Dolphins are known for their acrobatic displays, often leaping and spinning out of the water. This behavior may be a form of communication, or a means to remove parasites (or both). They have slim bodies, a long thin beak, and most have a distinctive tri color pattern with a dark gray dorsal area, a light gray middle, and white or light gray undersides.

Pantropical spotted dolphin

Scientific Name: Stenella attenuataFamily: DelphinidaeLength: 1.8 to 2.7 meters (5.9 to 8.9 feet) Weight: 80 to 130 kg (176 to 286 lbs)Where found: Warm waters of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans Pantropical spotted dolphins have a slender body with a distinct dark dorsal cape, spots covering their light gray or white sides, and a dark eye ring. They are highly social and often seen leaping and riding the bow waves of boats. The pantropical spotted dolphin is one of the world’s most abundant dolphin species.

Fraser’s dolphin

Scientific Name: Lagenodelphis hosei Family: Delphinidae Length: 2.6 to 2.7 meters (8.5 to 8.9 feet)Weight: 200 kg (440 lbs) Where found: Deep waters of the Pacific and Indian Oceans Fraser's dolphin is a lesser-known dolphin species known for its small beak, robust, torpedo-shaped body and a notably small dorsal f in relative to its body size. It has a striking color pattern, with a gray back and white undersides separated by a dark stripe that runs from the face, around the eye, and along the flanks. Found in deep waters of the tropical Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, Fraser's dolphin is a highly social species, often traveling in large groups, sometimes numbering in the thousands. It is known to be a fast swimmer.

Long finned Pilot Whale

Scientific Name: Globicephala melas Family: Delphinidae Length: 5.5 to 7.5 meters (18 to 25 feet) Weight: 1,300 to 2,300 kg (2,866 to 5,070 lbs) Where found: Both northern and southern hemispheres, in temperate and sub-polar areas The long-finned pilot whale is a large dolphin species distinguished by its long, sickle-shaped pectoral fins and bulbous forehead. Its body is dark, usually black or very dark gray, with lighter patches on the throat and belly. This species inhabits both open and coastal waters of the cooler regions of the Southern Hemisphere and the North Atlantic Ocean.

Risso’s Dolphin

Scientific Name: Grampus griseus Family: Delphinidae Length: 2.6 to 4 meters (8.5 to 13.1 feet) Weight: 300 to 500 kg (661 to 1,102 lbs) Where found: Temperate and tropical oceans worldwide Risso's Dolphins have a robust body with a unique creased forehead, a tall dorsal fin, and a dark gray body covered in extensive white scarring. They feed almost exclusively on squid and are known for their deep diving abilities.

Types of Oceanic Whales

Whales Seen in Pemuteran

Sperm Whale

Sperm whales are the largest toothed cetacean. Although they are the size of most large baleen whales, they actually have teeth on their bottom jaw, used to grasp large squid or fish, unlike other large whales that filter smaller denser prey through their baleen. Almost mythical creatures, sperm whales were historically feared and revered in cultures around the world. Though not the largest species of whale, it does have the largest head and the largest brain of any animal on the planet; can dive deeper than almost any other marine mammal; and lives in a stable and complex matrilineal society similar to that of elephants. Sperm whales are usually found in deep oceanic waters, but can be observed closer to shore around islands or areas where underwater canyons or a narrow continental shelf provide deep water nearshore habitat.exclusively on squid and are known for their deep diving abilities.

Bryde’s Whale

Bryde’s whales are one of the most poorly understood baleen whale species. Also known as ‘tropical whales’, due to their preference for waters of 16° Celsius or higher, they are found in both nearshore and open waters between the latitudes of 40° South and 40° North. Historically Bryde’s whales have been confused with Sei whales, which are larger and have a more temperate and sub-polar distribution. Further confusion is caused by uncertainty about the possible existence of two species of Bryde’s whales, which have provisionally been classified as two sub-species with partially overlapping ranges: the smaller Eden’s whale (Balaenoptera edeni edeni), and usually larger Bryde’s whale (B. e. brydei) 1,2. Another species that was formerly confused with Bryde’s whales is the Omura’s whale (Balaenoptera omurai), which was only described in 20033, and can overlap in range with both sub-species of Bryde’s whale.