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Commerson's Dolphin

Commerson's Dolphins are aquatic mammals.

Commerson's Dolphin Classification:

Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Cetacea
Family: Delphinidae
Genus: Cephalorhynchus
Species: Commersonii

Other Names: Piebald Dolphin, Skunk Dolphin, Jacobite , Southern Dolphin, and Panda Dolphin

Size: Commerson's Dolphins are one of the smaller species of dolphins. Commerson's Dolphins are 4.5 feet in length. They weigh between 77-132 lbs. Female Commerson's Dolphins are are typically somewhat larger than their male counterparts.

Habitat: Commerson's Dolphins are found in the shallow waters along the southernmost tip of South America and around the Kerguelen Islands in the Indian Ocean.

Commerson's Dolphin Photo
Commerson's Dolphin

Conservation Classification: Data Insufficient

Commersons Dolphin


Diet: Commerson's Dolphins are predators and eat fish, cuttlefish, octopus, crustaceans, and benthic invertebrates. They hunt collectively.

Senses: Commerson's Dolphins have a well developed, acute sense of hearing. The Commerson's Dolphins have acute vision both in and out of the water. The Commerson's Dolphin's olfactory nerves are absent, indicating that they have no sense of smell.

Description: Commerson's Dolphins have a small stocky body with rounded, paddle-like flippers and no obvious beak. Adult Commerson's Dolphins have black on the head, fluke, dorsal fin, flippers and the rear part of the back. The rest of the dolphin's body and the throat are white.

Birth: Commerson's dolphin calves are fairly large. They typically measure between 22 to 30 inches in length. The calf is 22 % of the mother’s body weight and is 61 % of her length on the average at birth!

Did You Know?

Commerson's Dolphins can often be found in naturally protected waters or harbors, sometimes they will enter the mouth of rivers.

Gestation: Commerson's Dolphins carry their young for approximately 350 days.

Calves: Commerson's Dolphin calves are born gray, black and brown.

Sexual Maturity: Male and female Commerson's Dolphins reach sexual maturity between the ages of 5-8.

Life Span:The average life span of Commerson's Dolphin is 15-18 years.

Social Structure: Commerson's Dolphins are found in small groups of two to three individuals. Occasionally larger groups of 20 to 30 or more dolphins will be observed.

Did You Know?


Commerson's dolphins typically eat 8-13 lbs of food per day. They have a high metabolization rate.

Athleticism: Commerson's Dolphins are fast, and active swimmers. They are often seen bow-riding, swimming upside down, and spinning underwater. They will swim at speeds of 7-8 mph.

Unusual: The Commerson's Dolphin is very active. They are also known to enjoy swimming upside-down, which is thought to improve the visibility of its prey.

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