Sealife guideThe striped dolphinStenella coeruleoalba
Last updated on 01/19/2026 at 11:38 PM
Taxonomy
English names
Striped dolphinStreaker porpoiseGray's dolphinEuphrosyne dolphinBlue-white dolphinBlue dolphin
French namesDauphin bleu et blanc
Spanish namesEstenela rayadaEstenela listadaDelfín listadoDelfin de betasDelfin blanco y azulDelfin blancoDelfín azulDelfin a rayas
Scientific nameStenella coeruleoalba (Meyen, 1833)
FamilyDelphinidae
OrderCetacea
ClassMammalia
Description
The striped dolphin typically measures 6.5 to 8.2 feet in length as an adult and weighs between 176 and 353 lbs.

The striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) © Richard Higgins | Dreamstime.com
The striped dolphin has a slender, elongated rostrum, a well-defined melon, and a falcate dorsal fin, giving it an elegant and dynamic silhouette. Its body is bluish-gray on the back and white on the belly, with a light or bluish-gray stripe along each side, which gives it its name.
Geographic range
The striped dolphin is found in temperate and tropical waters worldwide, including the Atlantic ocean near the Canary Islands and the Mediterranean sea.
Habitat
The striped dolphin is a highly social species, living in large, often very active groups. It particularly enjoys leaping, performing acrobatics, and swimming alongside the bows of boats.
Diet
The striped dolphin primarily feeds on fish and cephalopods, which it hunts in coordinated groups. It also consumes crustaceans.
Reproduction
Female striped dolphins give birth approximately every 3 to 4 years, following a gestation of about one year, to a calf measuring around 3 feet in length. The characteristic stripes gradually appear as the dolphin grows. Sexual maturity is reached between 8 and 12 years of age.
Did you know ?
The striped dolphin is listed as many other marine species within The IUCN Red List of threatened species. The striped dolphin appears in the IUCN Red List since 2019 within the category Least Concern !

The striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) © Izanbar | Dreamstime.com
Within the same genus
Within the same family

Common bottlenose dolphinTursiops truncatus

False killer whalePseudorca crassidens

Indo-Pacific humpback dolphinSousa chinensis

Pacific white-sided dolphinSagmatias obliquidens

Risso's dolphinGrampus griseus

Short-beaked common dolphinDelphinus delphis

Short-finned pilot whaleGlobicephala macrorhynchus

White headed dolphinCephalorhynchus hectori
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