 |
Galapagos DolphinThe two species that live in the Galapagos Islands are the Bottle Nosed Dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) and the Common Dolphin (Delphinus delphis). There are three other species (Spinner, Risso's and Pantropical Spotted Dolphins) that can also be spotted in the islands when migrating. Dolphins are cetaceans, thus they are considered whales just like the porpoises and the common whales.
The life span of dolphins in Galapagos is around 25 years but some bottlenose dolphins may live up to 50 years old. They usually feed on fish, squid and shrimps. Galapagos Dolphins have a layer or a coat of fat around their bodies which allows them to remain warm in the cold waters that sometimes surround the Galapagos Islands. When visiting these Islands you will notice that one of the best Galapagos attractions is to see sometimes up to 20 Galapagos dolphins swimming in front of your boat. This is a spectacular sight during the day and better at nights when their bodies glow with the moonlight as they gracefully race through the water. Galapagos Dolphin SpeciesCommon DolphinYou can distinguish the Common Galapagos islands dolphin from other species for the yellow spots that have on their sides and for their almost white chest and belly. These Dolphins are usually very dynamic, always jumping and splashing and they are often seen in schools of over one hundred individuals at a time. The Bottle Nosed DolphinThis Galapagos dolphin can be seen plentifully in the Galapagos Islands and often spotted swimming beside or in front of visitor boats.These dolphins are abundant in Galapagos and have adapted very well to the environment and to the cooler waters of these islands. The color of the Bottle nosed Dolphin fades from gray at the top of the body to very light gray and white at the bottom. The size of these dolphins varies from 6 to 13 feet and they can weight from 20 to 600 kg. Male dolphins are bigger females. Female bottlenose dolphins have an estimated lifespan of 40 years but male dolphins hardly live more than 30 years. Spinner DolphinYou can see this small dolphin (1.50 to 2 mts in length) at Fernandina and Isabela islands in Galapagos. Its scientific name is Stenella longirostris and can be seen on most tropical waters around the world as well.Risso's DolphinThis dolphin (Grampus griseus) can be easily identified by their scarred skin. These scars are caused by their front teeth when they play or fight with each other.Risso's dolphins inhabit in all seas around the world and can also be seen in the Galapagos Islands.Pantropical Spotted DolphinsThese dolphins (Stenella attenuata) live in all the oceans of the world and can also be spotted in Galapagos. The Pantropical dolphins in Galapagos have a long thin beak and they are bigger in size than the ones that live in warmer waters.There's an international program that was created to protect the Galapagos dolphin from fishing fleets that use fence nets in the surrounding waters of the islands. This program establishes very rigorous norms for the conservation of these marine mammals.
|
