Spinner dolphin

긴부리돌고래

The spinner dolphin is a slim tropical dolphin that lives in pods of up to hundreds. It has a long beak, a dark grey back and a white belly. It is famous for leaping high and spinning along its long axis several times in one jump.

See it on the 3D globe →

At a glance

Class: Mammals
Lives in: Tropical oceans worldwide, here around Fernando de Noronha in the Atlantic
Diet: Fish eater
Weight: about 50 kg
Length: about 1.8 m
Conservation status: Least Concern (IUCN LC)
Habitat: open ocean, coasts

Quick answers

Where does the Spinner dolphin live?

It lives in open ocean, coasts of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans. On the globe you can find it near Tropical oceans worldwide, here around Fernando de Noronha in the Atlantic.

How big is the Spinner dolphin?

It grows to about 1.8 m and 50 kg.

What does the Spinner dolphin eat?

Its diet: fish eater.

Is the Spinner dolphin endangered?

It is listed as Least Concern (IUCN LC).

The spinner dolphin is a slim, small dolphin of warm seas all over the world. It is famous for leaping out of the water and spinning around its long axis, sometimes several times before splashing down. Adults are about 1.3 to 2.3 metres long and weigh roughly 23 to 79 kilograms.

It has a long thin beak, a dark grey back, lighter sides and a pale belly, with a dark stripe from the eye to the flipper. Spinner dolphins live in groups called pods that can be very large. They often rest in shallow bays during the day and head out to deeper water at night to feed. People watching them from boats should keep a respectful distance so the dolphins can rest.

Daily routine

Spinner dolphins follow a predictable schedule. In the morning they rest and socialise in shallow, sheltered waters near the coast. In the evening they travel offshore to hunt. Because they depend on calm bays for rest, too many tour boats can disturb them, especially when boats get closer than local guidelines allow.

Why do they spin?

Scientists are still studying exactly why they spin, but it is the behaviour that gave the animal its name. The dolphins launch themselves out of the water and rotate on the way down. Their species name, longirostris, is Latin for long-beaked. There are four named subspecies, including a smaller dwarf form first found in the Gulf of Thailand.

Fun facts

It leaps out of the water and can spin up to seven times in a single jump.
It is named for spinning its body while it leaps through the air.
Its scientific species name means long-beaked in Latin.
There are four named subspecies, one of them a dwarf spinner dolphin.
Many rest in shallow coastal water by day and feed offshore at night.

On the globe

On the toy globe the spinner dolphin is placed in the Atlantic around Fernando de Noronha, an island group off Brazil. Look for its slim body and long beak.