Mammalia |
Cetartiodactyla |
Delphinidae
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Pelagic-oceanic; oceanodromous (Ref. 75906); depth range 0 - 4600 m (Ref. 116169). Tropical; 90°N - 90°S, 180°W - 180°E
Circumglobal. Tropical and temperate waters.
Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm 218.0  range ? - ? cm Max length : 260 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 1394); max. published weight: 156.0 kg (Ref. 1394)
Dorsal cape: muted blue or bluish-gray. Eye to anus flipper stripes: darker blue or bluish-black. Dark stripe subtending the eye-to-anus stripe usually present. Some individuals have distinct subtending stripe from the eye-to-anus stripe at its origin near the eye, while others the two fuse farther behind the eye only to bifurcate further posteriorly.
Inhabits warm waters (Ref. 1394). Feeds on small, mid-water squid and fish, especially lanternfish (Ref. 1394). Preyed upon by the great white shark (Ref. 36856) and blue sharks (Ref. 50255).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Sexual dimorphism: 2 to 3 years. Sexual maturity: between 7 to 15 years, 220 cm mean body length for males; between 5 to 13 years, 212 cm mean body length for females. Gestation: 12 to 13 months. Nursing: up to 1.5 years. Female fecundity decreases at around age 30. Maximum age: estimated at 57.5 years.
Jefferson, T.A., S. Leatherwood and M.A. Webber. 1993. (Ref. 1394)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
CITES status (Ref. 108899)
Threat to humans
Human uses
Fisheries: commercial
FAO - Fisheries: landings, species profile | FishSource | Sea Around Us
Tools
More information
Human RelatedAquaculture profile
Stamps, Coins Misc.
Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Preferred temperature
(Ref.
115969): 1.3 - 4.5, mean 1.9 (based on 24291 cells).
Vulnerability
Very high vulnerability (90 of 100).
Price category
Unknown.