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MAMMAL FACTS
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Description
The Atlantic White-sided Dolphin has black back and gray sides. The underside is white from the lower jaw to just past the anus. There are distinctive yellow-white patches on the sides within the gray area. The eyes are surrounded by black rings. The dorsal fin is tall, sharply curved and pointed at the tip The body is stocky with sickle shaped fins and a thick tail stock. The jaw has 30 to 40 pairs of pointed teeth.
Size
Length: males 2.3m - 3.0m; females 1.9m - 2.4m. Weight: 180-230 kg
Environment
cool open ocean
Food
fish, squid, shrimp.
Breeding
A single calf is born after a gestation period of about 10 months. The calf is about 1.1m long at birth and weighs about 25kg. The calf is weaned after about 18 months.
Range
north Atlantic Ocean from southern Greenland to Massachusetts, and from the British Isles to western Norway
Classification
| Class: | Mammalia | | Order: | Cetacea | | Family: | Delphinidae | | Genus: | Lagenorhynchus | | Species: | acutus | | Common Name: | Atlantic White-sided Dolphin |
Relatives in same Genus
Pacific White-sided Dolphin (L. obliquidens)
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