South Atlantic Whales Sanctuary Management Plan
and subtropical waters, and appears to be one of the rarest oceanic dolphins. In the Western South Atlantic it is distributed from southern to northeastern Brazil, but it is more frequently observed in offshore waters of the northeastern coast between the 1000m and 4500m isobaths. Strandings of this species are common in northeastern Brazil, with many along the State of Bahia, but sporadic in the southern and southeastern regions. One of the least known species of its genus, the Clymene dolphin feeds on small mesopelagic squid and fish. No global population estimates exist. Striped Dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba A cosmopolitan species, the striped dolphin occurs in tropical and subtropical seas. In the Western South Atlantic the Striped Dolphin is mostly found from 7 to 42 degrees South, and sightings closer to the continental margin are more frequent from October to February, and it is considered to be one of the least known species off Brazil. Prey species include a wide range of shoaling fish and cephalopods. The species appears to be relatively rare in parts of the South Atlantic, and there are no global population estimates. Atlantic Spotted Dolphin, Stenella frontalis The Atlantic spotted dolphin occurs in the North and South Atlantic from temperate to tropical waters. Its distribution along the African coast in the South Atlantic is poorly studied, but along South America it is distributed from southern to northeastern Brazil, where the species exhibits the highest preference for nearshore habitats within its genus, being generally found west of the 1000m isobath. Small fish, cephalopods and benthic invertebrates are its main food items. There are no reliable population estimates for the species.
Spinner Dolphin, Stenella longirostris The spinner dolphin is found in tropical and subtropical pelagic waters and around oceanic islands. In the Western South Atlantic, from southern to northeastern Brazil, it inhabits waters over the shelf and slope, in depths ranging from 170 to 2700m. It forages for small mesopelagic fish, squid and shrimp usually in waters between 200 to 300m deep. Though it is a widespread species numbering probably in the few millions, local populations around oceanic islands are very vulnerable to anthropogenic impacts. At the archipelago of Fernando de Noronha, groups of a resident population (which may reach about two thousand individuals) are observed on an almost daily basis at a specific bay, now protected inside a National Marine Park, allowing for the development of long-term studies. Fraser´s Dolphin, Lagenodelphis hosei Fraser’s dolphin is a typically high-seas dolphin of tropical waters, occurring usually beyond the 1000m isobath, and strandings in temperate areas are considered to represent extralimital occurrences related to temporary oceanographic anomalies, such as the El Niùo phenomenon. In the Southwestern Atlantic the species was first
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