Spinner dolphin (Stenella longirostris )
Family Delphinidae

Description: The spinner dolphin is usually less than 2m in length, with a long, slender beak. The dark black back and top of the head are separated from the distinct white belly by a broad grey flank band. A dark stripe, runs from the flipper to the eye (the stripe runs from the flipper to the beak in the common dolphin), adding contrast to the stark white throat. The dorsal fin is relatively small and tends to have a darker trailing edge. Look out too, for the black-tipped beak, which is a diagnostic feature. Spinner dolphins can offer hours of fun. They will frequently bowride, mounting spectacular displays of leaping, spinning and somersaulting. Their habit of leaping up to three metres in the air and spinning like a barrel, before slapping back down into the water, sets them apart from all other species and gives this dolphin its common name. Spinners often school in large numbers, groups of over 300 having been seen in UAE waters.

Habitat: Spinner dolphins live well offshore in deep water, where they feed on small fishes, relying on speed, agility and social cooperation to hunt.

Range: The spinner dolphin's presence in the Arabian Gulf was first evidenced by skulls found on UAE offshore islands in 1995. Sightings have since been made 20 kilometres off the city of Dubai, but its range here continues to at least 100 kilometres west of Abu Dhabi and stretches eastwards around the Musandam peninsula into the Indian Ocean. Fishermen of Fujairah claim to encounter it and its close relatives, the spotted dolphin (S. attenuata ) and striped dolphin (S. coeruleoalba), well offshore.

Comments: The reason why spinner dolphin spin is not fully known. Theories include the notion that it is an attempt to dislodge parasites, or it is a form of communication (particularly the splash made on re-entering the water), or perhaps simply that the dolphin is in a playful mood.