Common Bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus)

Group formation: Social fission fusion groups 10-30 (sometimes up to 100, mix with other dolphins)

Size: 2-4 m, calf 1.3 m

Weight: 200-600 kg, calf 9-21 kg

Age: 40-50 yrs

Sexual maturity: varies with populations 5-14 yrs

Gestation: 12 mths, 4-6 yrs in between

Weaning: 2.5-3 yrs

Diet: mostly fish, invertebrates, squids

Predators: sharks, killer whales, false killer whales, pygmy killer whales, short-finned pilot whales

Distribution: worldwide distribution ranging 45° N to 45° S, in temperate and tropical waters

Chile: very common in the Gulf of Corcovado, groups of > 100, very social and active

Population size: 600.000

Conservation Status: Least Concern ver 3.1, Pop. trend: unknown

Threats: Whaling (Faeroe Islands, Japan, Peru, Ecuador, Chile, Indonesia, Taiwan, Sri Lanka), chemical and plastic pollution, man-made noise impacts (seismic surveys, military sonar), entanglement in fishing gear, bycatch, over fishing, captivity