Bottlenose dolphin/Tursiops truncatus

Description of the species:
Bottlenose dolphins are sea mammals which populate nearly all the seas and oceans. The only place where they cannot be found is in the polar regions. The bottlenose dolphin is the most frequent and only permanently settled type of dolphin in the Adriatic. It can be found throughout the entire Adriatic, but the best studied area is the Kvarnerić where the population has been assessed at around 120 animals. They mainly feed on bottom species of fish, small pelagic types of oily fish, and to a lesser extent cephalopods and crabs. Their backs are dark blue and their bellies are white. They may grow up to 3.8 metres and they can dive up to 500 metres.

Reasons for threat:
Pollution of the sea, which most frequently comes from the land in the form of various xenobiotics; disturbance of critical habitats; noise of ships' engines, which disturbs their communication and orientation; degradation and fragmentation of habitats; accidental catching in nets; intentional killing; waste which dolphins occasionally swallow or entangle themselves in; lack of food due to overfishing; intensive sea traffic.

Protection:
The species is strictly protected in accordance with the Ordinance on designating protected and strictly protected wild species (Official Gazette 7/06 and 99/09). According to the Ordinance on penalties for damage committed by illegal actions against protected animal species (Official Gazette 84/96), the penalty for killing a bottlenose dolphin is 35,000 kuna.

Bottlenose dolphin info

• Video clips

• When you meet a dolphin