Bottlenose Dolphin

Description

Aboard the America, whales are not the only species commonly spotted; Bottlenose Dolphins are a typical sea animal seen during whale watching excursions in San Diego. So, what is a Bottlenose Dolphin’s habitat? These smart ocean mammals are mostly found in marine parks, parks consisting of an area of sea usually set aside to preserve a specific habitat and ensure the ecosystem is sustained. The common Bottlenose Dolphin is one of the most familiar cetaceans of the sea.

These sleek animals are light to slate gray in color with a light gray belly. Feeding primarily on small fish, they often hunt together while using their echolocation. Bottlenose Dolphins can be very social marine life being spotted in pods of several hundred individuals. Luckily these creatures are not endangered but they continue to be vulnerable to pollution and are commonly caught in fishing gear, such as gill-nets and shrimp trawls, on accident. Bottlenose Dolphins predators entail sharks, such as Tiger sharks, Dusty sharks and Bull sharks. Orcas, or killer whales, also prey upon old or weak dolphins. To protect themselves against their predators, dolphins utilize their small groups of pods or herds which make them seem more threatening to sharks, who then avoid the group. If a dolphin is threatened or attacked, they use their speed and agility to escape any harm or danger.