animal classification

dolphin

COMMON NAME:	bottlenose dolphin, Atlantic bottlenose dolphin, Pacific bottlenose dolphin, bottle-nosed dolphin

KINGDOM:

Animalia

CLASS:

Mammalia

PHYLUM:

Chordata

ORDER:

Cetacea

FAMILY                                                                 Delphinidae

SUBORDER                                                          Odontoceti

GENUS SPECIES                                                 Tursiops truncatus

Description

Bottlenose dolphins are light to dark gray over their dorsal surface, fading into a white or cream along their ventral region. They have a streamlined fusiform body shape. The source of their common name, bottlenose dolphins exhibit a pronounced anterior rostrum (often referred to as a beak), typically 7 to 8 cm (3 in.) in length. Said rostrum generally contains 72 to 104 conically-shaped, homogenous teeth, with tooth counts varying among individuals. Their dorsal fin is falcate.

Habitat

Bottlenose dolphins inhabit warm temperate waters, adapting to several marine and estuarine habitats, including, occasionally, rivers. Habitat use is influenced by environmental heterogeneity; meaning these animals distribute through an ecosystem depending on factors like resources, depth, water temperature, sea-bed gradient and type of sediment.

https://seaworld.org/animals/facts/mammals/bottlenose-dolphin/