The common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), or the Atlantic bottlenose dolphin (and in older literature simply as the bottlenose dolphin, a term now applied to the genus), is the most well-known species from the family Delphinidae. Common bottlenose dolphins are the most familiar dolphins due to the wide exposure they receive in captivity in marine parks and dolphinarium, and in movies and television programs. T. truncatus is the largest species of the beaked dolphins. They inhabit temperate and tropical oceans throughout the world and are absent only from polar waters. All bottlenose dolphins were previously known as T. truncatus, but recently the genus has been split into three species, T. truncatus, T. aduncus (Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin) and T. australis (Burrunan dolphin). Although T. truncatus has been traditionally called the bottlenose dolphin, many authors have used the name common bottlenose dolphin for this species since two other species of bottlenose dolphins were described. The dolphins inhabit warm and temperate seas worldwide. Considerable genetic variation has been described among members of this species, even between neighboring populations, and so many experts believe multiple species may be included within T. truncatus.
Lifespan[]
Bottlenose dolphins can live up to 50 years in the wild. Up to 30 years in captivity.
Diet[]
Common bottlenose dolphins eat mostly fish.
Predators[]
Bottlenose dolphins are eaten by sharks and orcas.
