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Chilean Dolphin

By: John Hancock and Audra Day. Chilean Dolphin. Also Known As…. Cephalorhynchus eutropia Black Dolphin White-Bellied Dolphin. Physical Description. Smaller cetaceans Average length of 5.5 feet and 130 pounds Stocky body shape B lunt, beakless heads Round paddle shaped flippers

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Chilean Dolphin

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  1. By: John Hancock and Audra Day Chilean Dolphin

  2. Also Known As… • Cephalorhynchuseutropia • Black Dolphin • White-Bellied Dolphin

  3. Physical Description • Smaller cetaceans • Average length of 5.5 feet and 130 pounds • Stocky body shape • Blunt, beakless heads • Round paddle shaped flippers • Gray in color with lighter coloring on the ventral (bottom) side. • White markings on the lips, throat, forehead, and behind each flipper.

  4. Distribution • Endemic Species • Found only in the cold, coastal waters of South America, • from Valparaiso, Chile, down to Cape Horn, Argentina.

  5. Reproduction and Lifespan • Currently unknown due to lack of research • They are thought to be similar to Hector's and Commerson'sdolphins • With a gestation period of 10 months to one year • And a maximum longevity of 20 years. Hector’s Dolphin Commerson’s Dolphin

  6. Feeding They have been known to eat: • Green Algea • Cephalopods • Crustaceans • Smaller fish • Such as sardines and anchovies

  7. Habitat • From the Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom: • “Fine-scale habitat selection of Chilean dolphins (Cephalorhynchuseutropia): interactions with aquaculture activities in southern Chiloé Island, Chile.”

  8. Purpose of the study: • “… to investigate the environmental and behavioral determinants of habitat use, and to evaluate the interactions between this species and aquaculture activities” • Conducted between January and April 2002. • 293.5 hours of observation

  9. Habitat Selection • Dolphins were found to spend 91% of their time in areas within 500 m. of the coast, in depths between 5-10 m. • Only 21% of the study area

  10. More findings • Foraging was the most observed behavior • Scanning or searching for food, possibly benthic feeding

  11. Interactions with Aquaculture • No significant association between intense habitat use and distance to salmon farms. • However, mussel coverage restricts space available for biologically important behaviors • They avoid areas of high mussel density. • About 15.3% of their preferred habitat was unavailable due to mussel coverage.

  12. Threats • Hunting dolphins is illegal in Chile • Accidental catching is a huge threat • They are sometimes killed for human consumption or crab and swordfish bait • 1,300-1,500 dolphins have been reported harpooned each year • Remote locations make enforcing laws difficult

  13. Conservation Status • Population size is estimated in the low thousands, so they are vulnerable. • Not a lot of information available, but populations seem to be declining • IUCN lists the Chilean Dolphin as Near Threatened. • Pending more research

  14. Sources • http://www.lume.ufrgs.br/bitstream/handle/10183/27461/000611325.pdf?...1 • http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/4160/0 • http://marinebio.org/species.asp?id=348

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