Spinner Dolphin
Stenella longirostris
Acrobatic dolphin famous for resting in the lagoons of Sha'ab Samadai (Dolphin House) and Sataya.
Family
Delphinidae
Avg Size
130-200 cm
Habitat
The spinner dolphin occurs in nearly all tropical and subtropical waters between 40 degrees north and 40 degrees south. It mainly keeps to coastal waters, islands, and banks, though in the eastern tropical Pacific it lives well offshore, and it may shift between habitats with the season. Its diet centres on small mesopelagic fish, squid, and sergestid shrimp, for which it dives 200 to 300 m; Hawaiian spinner dolphins feed at night in the deep scattering layers, while the dwarf form feeds mostly on bottom-dwelling fish in reefs and shallow water.
Behaviour
Because it forages at night, in places such as Hawaii and northern Brazil the spinner dolphin spends the day resting in shallow bays near deep water. The group rests as one, drifting slowly back and forth in a tight formation while staying just out of contact with one another, for roughly four to five hours a day, relying on vision rather than echolocation during these periods. At dusk they head offshore to feed, travelling along the shore on foraging trips, and the individuals sharing a given bay may differ from one day to the next.
Where & When to See It
Three Pools
Thomas Reef
Tower
Turtle Reef
Umm Gamar North
Umm Gamar South
Woodhouse Reef
Belina Wreck
Blue Hole - El Bells
Eel Gardens
El Fanadir
Far Garden
North Ras Abu Galum
Paradise
Pinky Wall
Ras Nasrani
Shark & Yolanda Reef
Soma Bay Garden
The Barge at Bluff Point
The Caves
Turft El Shahed
Turtle Bay
White Knight
Abu Hashish
Abu Kifan
Abu Nuhas
Abu Ramada North
Abu Ramada South
Amphoras
Banana Reef
Big Giftun
Bluff Point
Careless Reef
Carnatic
Chrisoula K
Dunraven (Beacon Rock)
Eel Garden
El Erug
El Fanous West
El Mina Wreck
Erg Abu Ramada
Erg Sabina
Erg Somaya
Fiddle Garden
Giannis D
Gordon Reef
Gota Abu Ramada
Hamda
Jackfish Alley
Jackson Reef
Kimon M
Kormoran
Laguna Reef
Lighthouse
Middle Garden
Moray Garden - Golden Blocks
Napoleon Reef
Near Garden
North Gabr El Bint
Panorama Reef
Ras Abu Helal
Ras Bob
Ras Burg
Ras Disha
Ras Ghamila
Ras Ghozlani
Ras Katy
Ras Um Sid
Ras Zaatar
Rosalie Moller
Salem Express
Shaab Abu Nugar
Shaab Eissa
Shaab Eshta
Shaab Petra
Shaab Sabina
Shabrur Um Gamar
Shag Rock (Kingston)
Shark Observatory
Shark's Bay
Siyul Kebira
Small Crack
Small Giftun
Sodfa
South Ras Abu Galum
Temple
The Alternatives
The Canyon
The Islands
The Ulysses
Thistlegorm
Fury Shoals
Habili Gaffar
Shaab El Erg
Daedalus Reef
Sha'ab Samadai (Dolphin House)
Abu Dabbab
Umm Kharalim
Gota Soraya
Gota Kebir
Elphinstone
Habili Ali
Shaab Sataya
Aida
Numidia
Zabargad Island
Shaab Claudia
Big Brother Island
Shaab Maksur
Rocky Island
Sha'ab Sharm
Little Brother Island
Abu Ghalawa