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Pelagic Dolphins of the North Atlantic
On this page I cover dolphins not likely to be seen on inshore whale watches, but which have been or may be encountered on the long offshore trips to the continental shelf edge.  These include:  Atlantic Spotted Dolphin, Pantropical Spotted Dolphin, Striped Dolphin, Spinner Dolphin, and  Clymene Dolphin.  Descriptions and pictures will be added as these animals are spotted on trips.

Atlantic Spotted Dolphin
A large pod of Spotted Dolphin which included pink bellied calves and spotted adults was seen on the 2010 August BBC Pelagic.

The Atlantic Spotted Dolphin has a definite beak and a falcate dorsal fin in the middle of its back.  Adults and calves have a 3 color pattern: dark gray dorsal cape, lighter gray zone on the sides that crosses over the back and white belly.  The young are not spotted and the individuals we observed had bright pink bellies a feature I have not found described in the two resources I used to write this page.  Spotting patterns are variable and increase with age.  There may be a white tip to the beak. (1 )

They resemble the Bottlenose Dolphin and on our trip the first call was for Bottlenosed Dolphin before the leaders got a better look and saw the very prominent spotting.

They have been found in shallow and deep water and occur in North Atlantic waters influenced by the Gulf Stream. (1)

Striped Dolphin
A pod of 120-150 Striped Dolphin was seen on the CORE offshore trip in 2001 just after leaving Gilbert's Canyon and again on the 2004 trip. The CORE trips were 2 night trips from Gloucester that focused on Cetaceans and Birds and went primarily to the offshore canyons of the Continental Shelf Edge.

A beaked Dolphin with a tall falcate dorsal fin.  Like the Spotted Dolphin it has a 3 color pattern: dark gray on the dorsal side, light gray below with a "V" shaped intrusion on the dark gray, and white below.  The white area is separated from the light gray by a dark stripe.

Tends to live further north than either the Atlantic Spotted Dolphin , Clymene Dolphin,  or Spinner Dolphin. Ranges north to Newfoundland on the east side of the Atlantic and Scotland in the North Sea.

References:

1 2002 Folkens, Pieter  Guide to Marine Mammals of the World Alfred A. Knopf, New York

2 2001 Kinze, Carl Christian  Marine Mammals of the North Atlantic ; Princeton University Press